


Magic Stories

by MsOmniprescent



Series: Magic Stories [1]
Category: No Fandom
Genre: Blood and Violence, CelestialWeapons, Demons, DivineStones, Fantasy, Fighting, Magic, Magic-Users, Mythology - Freeform, Original Character(s), Original Fiction, Witches
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-28
Updated: 2020-06-26
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:28:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 48,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24238054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MsOmniprescent/pseuds/MsOmniprescent
Summary: Book 1: The Witch and the DemonMagical creatures and humans have been at war for centuries and are destined to cross blades again. Even as a princess of the Pearl Kingdom, Aurora Gorgon could care less about any of that. The only thing she cared for was her next grand battle and thrill. However, given her curse, she believes that would never happen unless she goes through her abusive, authoritative, ruthless mother.  Such a reality would change after she meets a demon that is heavily tied to her lamented past.The pair seeks out the power of the divine sorcerer's stones that could help remedy their pasts as well as their doomed fates but get heavily caught in things that a bigger than the both of them. Demi-Gods, monsters, and even the militia plague their path to these stones, that if they fall in the wrong hands, mortals could face extinction. Can Aurora and the demon prevent this? Or, will their pasts cause friction between them? Will this potential adventure be something she can sink her teeth into, or will she bite off more than she can chew?Follow @msomniprescent on IG for supplemental and promotional content regarding the story!
Series: Magic Stories [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1749475





	1. Prologue

_**June 17th, 1986** _

Every other century, a new conflict arises between the magical creatures and the human race. This century is no different, with it being the start of the Third Great War. Leaders of both sides want nothing more than to spill each other's blood and have their people thrive worldwide. Even without the forces of magic, humans still are an imposing force, with their large countries and advanced weapon technology. To turn the tide and come out victors, both sides seek certain magical devices, that if harnessed, can cause cataclysmic destruction in just a matter of seconds.

In the vast ocean of Dessus that separates the magical country of Gennomy from the human country of Zerex, several cargo and worships were set sail, heading towards Gennomy. These ships boasted large cannons, high waving flags, and a plethora of armed soldiers. On the side of these large black and silver ships were the giant letters "U.M.A". On the largest ship stood a woman with long, flowing white hair, wearing a black uniform with badges and a grey beret. There was a long sword to her left, and a large, green glowing sphere attached to her right hip. She had a cigarette in her mouth and a scowl as she looked down upon the men working to pull things from out of the waters using nets.

"Men, I won't tolerate failure! We already have one of the Divine Sorcerer's Stones. We won't rest searching these damn magic waters until we've found another!" she yelled.

Her orders were interrupted when a young soldier came running to her.

"General! Come here! You've got to see this!" the soldier pleaded, bent over on his knees.

The woman spat out her cigarette and slowly turned back towards the young soldier. She glared at him with discontent. "This better be good, rookie."

The two walked over to another end of the ship where several soldiers were gathered around fishnets. Inside of most of these nets were old rocks, stones, seashells, and fish. One net, in particular, had a statue of a woman covered in sand and moss. The statue's face appeared to be in agony, boasting large fangs, claws, a scaly texture, and snakes in place of her hair. Upon seeing the dirty structure, the general crossed her arms and scowled at the young soldier who dragged her there.

"You dragged me down here for this? You found an old statue of a snake monster from Gennomy. What of it?" she said angrily.

One of the soldiers around them approached the general with a large textbook. She flipped through it and showed her a page that had a panting of the same statue. Upon seeing it, the general's heart skipped a beat and she grinned. She couldn't believe that she found something so ancient and so renowned in the world's history. Something believed to be lost to time.

"Well men, you may not have found another Divine Stone, but you may have found something even greater! Something that's been gone for over 600 years! If we can use the stone to manipulate her power somehow, we can definitely wipe out the Magic Militia and Magic Council and win this war!" She declared. "It's time for us humans to reign supreme once and for all."

The declaration riled up the other soldiers in a chant. Yet, the green sphere on her right hip began to glow brighter and brighter. The general and the other soldiers took notice of it, prompting her to remove the stone and inspect it. She pondered as to why it began glowing suddenly, then looked to the statue of the woman.

"I wonder. Is this stone reacting to her?" she mumbled to herself.

The woman moved closer to the statue with the sphere in hand, and it began glowing brighter and emitting sparks. The other soldiers backed away, uneasy about the change in atmosphere. "Ma'am wait! It could be dangerous! We should call Dr. Faus and have him look at it!" one of the soldiers called out.

The woman smiled and got on one knee. She slowly brought the stone closer to the statue's agonized face. "If he were here, he'd do the same thing. The glowing must mean this is what's meant to happen."

The stone glowed bright to the point of blinding those around it. It got boiling hot, prompting the general to drop it and jump back. As the stone rolled over to the base of the statue, it began cracking, and a purple light engulfed it. The statue levitated, along with the glowing stone. The soldiers and general watched the spectacle in both awe, confusion, and fear. The pressure of the air grew greater, weighing the soldiers down and cracking the floorboards. The entire ship shook, and ripples of water emitted from the ship.

"General! What have you done?" another soldier screamed.

There was a large flash of purple light, a woman emerged, with bare skin and all. Her scales were gone, yet her hair was full of hissing black snakes. The storm that nearly collapsed the ship ceased all at once. Only the sounds of the ocean waves could be heard. The boat was silent. She slowly descended back to the deck of the ship. The woman saw confused, terrified faces all around her. The general, on the other hand, was full of excitement and joy. She believed, with the help of this woman, not only could they collect the other stones, but they could win the war outright with her power.

"You...you're alive! After all this ti-

The general stopped. The woman was gone as if she was never there. She looked around frantically. After scanning around and seeing nothing but her confused men, she felt something impale her chest from behind. The general slowly looked down to see a hand with sharp white claws, seeped in her own glistening blood. She struggled to turn her own head but saw the freedwoman with the green stone in her other hand and glare about purple eyes. Her soldiers all freaked and aimed their rifles at her.

With a soft, soothing voice, she said, "What is this incredible source of magic, and where did you get it, human?"

The general choked on her words, overwhelmed from the unimaginable pain. Her blood seeped down her uniform and created a pool beneath her legs. "Surely you know of- of the Divine Stones," she uttered as blood spewed from her mouth.

"Divine Stones? What's that? What do you seek them for?"

The general's legs and eyes fell weak. The pain was causing her to lose consciousness.

"Answer me!"

"To win the war..." she said as her body felt limp.

The woman tossed the general's body to the side. The other humans surrounding her shivered as they aimed their weapons. "Can any of you give me insight into what's going on? Are you humans still at war with the empire?"

They all opened fire without hesitation. Bullets flew everywhere, putting holes all over the deck and the railing. Once again, the woman was out of sight. They all scrambled around the ship searching for her and had no clue she hovered over them, like a god looking down upon mortals. She folded her arms, with the stone still in hand. "I suppose I have to ask someone else."

The woman's eyes lit up a bright yellow. "Humans!" she called out.

They aimed their weapons before filling the ship with their whales of agony and terror. In mere seconds, the ship was rendered completely silent again.

A few days later, within the large city known as the Pearl Kingdom, lived a woman in a red and gold dress, boasting a golden crown atop her red hair. She had pointy ears and a large scorpion tail emerging from her backside. The illustrious Queen of the Pearl Kingdom, Euryale Gorgon. She sat comfortably at her golden throne, eating grapes inside of her large, fortified white and gold castle. Her two guards, a Centaur and Minotaur, were adjacent to her on each side. She relaxed without a care in the world, releasing a satisfying sigh. A man with long blue hair came dashing into her room panicking.

"Your majesty! Your majesty! I have terrible new-

"Halt!" Euryale yelled.

He stopped in his tracks and stood up straight.

"Kneel and give a proper greeting. Have you forgotten your place, fool!"

He did precisely that, sweating profusely and nervous to a bone chill. "Corporal Asclepius of the Magic Militia, head of the medical team, reporting an incident. Excuse my interruption of your relaxation time my queen!"

"I thought I recognized that absurdly long blue hair of yours. What do you want? Did another soldier croak? Or did you bring in another sniveling human and he started killing everyone because of, what you claimed last time, 'PTSD'?" Euryale sneered.

Asclepius stood back up and said, "No ma'am, but I just saw a news bulletin. Apparently, a group of U.M.A weapon and cargo ships were found destroyed and sunken."

Euryale smiled and chuckled upon hearing the news. "You made it seem like you had bad news! That sounds wonderful to me! Was the Mutate Stone found in the wreckage? And who in the council authorized the attack without telling me!?"

Asclepius's stress grew the more he thought about the news he was giving. It was as if he was staring down a starving tiger in the face. "That's just it, my lady...the attack on their ships was not from us." He swallowed his spit and closed his eyes. "Upon inspection of the wreckage, there were several statues of U.M.A soldiers. All of them were corpses! Corpses turned into solid stone!!"

Much like her heart, Euryale dropped her grape. She jumped up to her feet and began to feel a very similar feeling to Asclepius. "What the hell do you mean stone corpses!? That can't be right!"

"Ma'am, do you think that it's...you know who? The stone corpses...only one mortal was capable of using magic like that!"

Euryale gritted her teeth and clenched her fists tightly, growing anxious, and frustrated. Someone she once hated yet feared resurfaced, sending her mind into disarray. "This is bad! Contact the members of the Magic Council for a meeting and tell them to halt their pursuit of Shiro Lazuli! Withdraw all the soldiers from their stations! Finding and stopping her takes top priority!"

"Yes ma'am!" he said as he stormed out.

The guards saw the distress on Euryale's face for seemingly the first time in their lives. Euryale thought of how the timing of this reveal couldn't have been any worse. How the tide of war coupled with the random disappearance of a Council member just made an already grim situation more gruesome. She knew that another, greater battle was about to take place; something that was much greater than the war they were currently in.


	2. Enter, Aurora!

****_August 15th, 2013_ ** **

****_“You may have a...weird way of handling things, but your heart is real. One hundred percent, ya know?”_ ** **

Those words changed Aurora for the rest of her life, giving her something she’d never thought she had: a choice. Yet, with every choice she made, bloodshed ensued. That fateful day was no different. The sky appeared to reflect the carnage below. She panted, covered in sweat, bruises, and sparkling, glistening blood. She took in everything that transpired as she looked around. The aftermath looked like a bomb site wherever Aurora looked. Trees scattered, shredded, or scorched all around her. She saw gaping craters and ruptured earth around her as if an earthquake took place. Covering it all was several black thorns and skewers, along with 13 corpses, all with large wounds. Each of them wore all black, with the character ‘串’ ****_(kushi, meaning Skewer)_**** on their backs. Splatters of scarlet were everywhere, but none more than all over Aurora’s shaky, clawed hands. She stood above one of her victims. A young girl near her age, with the same painfilled eyes, and a giant wound going down her body. Aurora sobbed, falling to her knees and grabbing her aching chest, which glowed.

She noticed the girl below her moving her mouth. “Alicia....” Aurora murmured. Aurora couldn’t hear the words she was saying, but eyes nearly jumped out of her head when she made them out.

“You had a choice. You always had a choice.” 

Just a few days later, Aurora found herself in the streets of the Pearl Kingdom were empty and coated with water, pouring down from the steel-colored sky. In spite of the awful weather, a young girl walked slowly with her eyes fixated on the ground. Her long, red camisole and skirt were drenched. Her long, wavy red hair stuck to her back and covered her forehead and part of her eyes, which were different colors (red and blue). Her skin was a mess, smudged with black and brown scuffs and patches. The scuffs partly covered the tattoo on her chest, a red scorpion, with the tail coiling around her neck. Her hands were the dirtiest, covered dark burgundy, which would brighten to red due to the rain. The young girl felt her chest caved in when she looked at her hands. 

"I've had blood on my hands before," her hands shivered and tears leaked from her eyes. "So why is it different this time? Why did it have to happen this way?" she muttered to herself.

Aurora marched on before approaching a giant castle. The castle was made of white marble, with its triangular roofs velvet and it's railing a brimming gold. As beautiful as the castle was, seeing the scorpion insignia near its highest tower made the girl cringe. She dreaded going inside and facing her.

Inside the castle, within the highest tower, the queen of the Pearl Kingdom, Euryale Gorgon, sat on her throne in the throne room. The room had a floor made of sparkling marble with a red and gold checkerboard design. A velvet carpet led from the door to the throne itself, and there was a large painting of Euryale behind her. The queen sat in her throne, with her gold robe covering most of her and her crown on the top of her head. When the door opened, and Aurora walked through, her eyes squinted. Seeing her soaked, dripping, and covered in dirt was just a bit off.

"So, you're back. It's been three days." Euryale said. "You should've come after drying off. Any stains you get in my carpet or the floor will be cleaned by you, and not the maids."

The girl said nothing and returned Euryale's glare.

"Why come in here in be silent? Since you're here I want your mission report, now."

Aurora's face reddened and she clenched her fists. Her first time back in a few days and not even as much as a hello? Or glad you're back in one piece. Her blood bubbled like carbon. "The mission was.." the girl choked up. The heat from her face now wasn't of anger, but of sadness. Just trying to utter those words made her want to burst into a sorrowful whale. "It was a success. The syndicate was eradicated."

Euryale smiled. She got out of her throne and walked towards the girl, with her giant, red, scaly scorpion tail swaying left and right. She towered over the girl. "I expect nothing less out of my own daughter. Good job."

Aurora's face loosened and she looked up at her. She never once heard those words from her. It was a hidden feeling, but there was a slither of happiness in that small praise. Maybe things would be different from here on out, she thought.

"I don't know why you were gone for so long when the deed was done days ago. I must commend you for taking a step forward. Not only did you be-rid those annoying rebels, but you got rid of their pesky kin as well! I must say, your Gorgon blood is thriving in you, daughter." Euryale said.

Aurora felt like her heart stopped. "Kin?"

"The rest of that demon clan. The Furasakus were clearly still dangerous, so good on you for not leaving any stone unturned. The Militia found their destroyed bodies and their burned village yesterday. The question still remains, where were you all this time?"

Aurora tuned out everything Euryale said. She grabbed her hair and started shaking. Aurora hoped desperately that Euryale was lying. "I didn't kill the entire clan!" she shrieked.

"Mind your squawking, child!"

Aurora regained her composure and stood up straight.

"Now, what was it you said?" You weren't responsible for killing off the rest of the Furasakus?"

"My mission was just to take out the Skewer Ops, not their home clan. And I did."

Euryale's grin turned vanished. "If not you, who was strong enough to take out that many demons?" Euryale considered the possibilities. "Damn! I suppose I need my forces to investigate further. It's still a good thing, but the mere fact someone we're unfamiliar may be responsible is concerning."

"A good thing? How could you say that?! Those were innocent people-"

"You dare question me!? Don't forget your place child!" 

Aurora stopped, seeing Euryale's death glare. She cowered and looked away. A chill went down her spine when she felt her mother's hand grab her cold shoulder.

"My child, those demons were all dangerous. Would you have rather those slaughtered been our people in the kingdom? That was sure to happen had I not sent you to eradicate the lot."

Aurora's hand burned and stung, as did her face. Her body was screaming at her to tell Euryale off. To confront her about her lies. That demon clan in Aurora's eyes were purely misguided and didn't deserve what happened.

"You did a good thing getting rid of them as you were instructed. After all, you wouldn't want to let me down, would you? You know what happens to those that do."

Aurora saw the sparkling ring with a blue crystal on Euryale's hand. Just looking at it made her quake. Any thoughts of a verbal assault left her body almost instantly.

"Regardless, it's one less problem for me to deal with. Our conversation is done. Get out. Clean yourself up."

Euryale headed back towards her throne. "Oh, by the way. Your rest won't be long. We still need to verify if another Divine Sorcerer's Stone resides in our continent. Your search starts up tomorrow."

Aurora sucked on her teeth and marched out of the room. She ran to her own and leaped in her bed, burying her face in her pillow. Even three days later, with all the time she spent by herself, the pain didn't let up at all. She sobbed loudly. Missions like that weren't foreign to her at all. Yet, what happened that day was more than she could've bargained for. Never did she ever expect someone so close to her to be at the end of her blade. Aurora simply wanted to forget about it all, pretend it never happened. Try to focus on the things she found enjoyment, and bear with the hell of her home. It was clear to her things weren't going to be that different after all. 

_*************** _

_**April 24th, 2015** _

In a small metropolitan city in southern Gennomy, the local inhabitants were under siege and their city set ablaze. People fled the streets and screamed in terror as a giant monster continued its assault. The creature stood at a large 40 feet and was also engulfed in flames. It was golem-like with cinderblocks and bricks for skin. Its large massive hands decimated everything in sight, destroying cars, small buildings, and houses. Some innocents were caught in the crossfire, and their bodies were charred to the bone. Local police and SWAT surrounded the creature, shooting it with everything in the arsenal, but to no avail. Several fire trucks surrounded the monster from a distance and tried hosing it down. Their efforts were also wasted, as they couldn't even flicker its flames. 

One of the firemen caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a man standing on the stout shoulders of the raging golem. The man had pointed ears and wore black overalls with large, black gloves. The gloves had glowing, blue stones inside of them. After shouting to point out the man's relevance, the man atop of the golem laughed maniacally. 

"So, now they see me? The lack of intelligence of this species is baffling! These HUMANS deserve nothing but suffering!" The man yelled as he pointed forward. Slowly, the fire golem marched on, continuing its devastation. "Where's the big boy guns eh!? Where's your U.M.A eh!? I wanted to make this fun! Call them down so we can have a good time!!"

As the golem drew closer, the police and SWAT retreated on foot, leaving their vehicles behind. The man atop of the golem laughed hysterically as the carnage ensued. Several members of the police grew frustrated, unable to slow it down at all.

"We have to call them. They're the only people suited to fight against magic!" one of the policemen stated.

"And start more disputes between the U.M.A and the Queen? Are you trying to start a Fourth Great War!?" another fired back.

"It doesn't matter! We don't have a lot of time before this place is in ashes!"

Some of the more authoritarian figures, including the town's mayor, watched the carnage from a distance. Using his binoculars, he zoomed in and something caught his eye. Hovering high above the raging golem appeared to be a person, yet he couldn't get a clear visual of it. He pointed out to the others and they all tried to zone in and get a clearer picture of it.

What they were looking at was a young girl floating on a broom. She wore an aqua blue hoodie and munched on an apple as she looked down below. She removed her hood revealing her long, wavy red hair. It was Aurora, now fifteen years old. "What a mess. This idiot better be worth my time." She said to herself as she finished her apple and dropped the core. She stood atop the broom and slowly released her balance. She dived headfirst towards the golem, with a smile on her face and her hair blinding her differing colored irises on her eyes (blue and red respectively). A blue aura surrounded her and her clothes changed from an aqua hoodie to red camisole and a red skirt. Those combating the golem all saw her diving towards it, yet the man atop of it was largely unaware.

"What the hell are they looking at?" He looked up and was met face to face with the smiling girl, who bashed her skull headfirst into his.

He flew off the golem and crashed into the ground due to the force of the impact. The golem came to a standstill, and the girl planted her feet on its large head. She rubbed her ringing head and groaned. "Probably should've led with my fist and not my head!" she complained.

The police and firemen became mere spectators and were all perplexed at the events unfolding before their very eyes. The man slowly emerged concrete, grabbing his aching, bleeding skull. However, the cut that formed slowly closed on its own. He glared at the girl with a furious rage building within him.

"What the hell are you doing!? Do you have a death wish girl!?" he yelled.

Aurora smiled and folded her arms in confidence. "Raiko, infamous golem enchanter and fire magic specialist. Am I correct?"

He was taken aback, and distress was written all over his face. "You mustn't be human if you know who I am. Are you a witch?" He scanned the girl with his eyes and saw a red scorpion tattoo on part of her chest and coiling around her neck. Match that with her red hair, he knew exactly who he was dealing with, and got cold feet. "Oh Shit!"

"Hm? What is it!?"

Raiko gritted his teeth. "Yeah, there's no mistaking that brand. I know who you are! Why are you interfering with me?"

The girl sighed. "Talking is so boring. Can we fight no-

The golem's flame engulfed hand swung around to grab the girl, much like a person trying to grab a mosquito. Raiko smiled with his closed fist reaching out towards the golem with the stones glowing. He knew with the witch out of the way, he could continue making a statement out of the humans. Raiko felt a finger tapping on his shoulder. He turned around for his blood to freeze and his heart to sink. The girl stood before him, with a smile on her face.

"Sup?"

Raiko stumbled back and gawked at her, stunned from her immense speed. He never could've imagined someone could move like that, especially her. The girl swiftly kicked Raiko in his stomach and sent him flying into the golem. The impact caused the golem's flames to disperse and for its large body to crumble and implode. The girl groaned at the sight in misery. "Not again! Dammit! I wanted to have more fun first!" she cried out.

The spectators were speechless at the girl's lack of effort to deal with the crisis. "She did it. That....that witch! We threw everything we had at it!" one of them barked.

"The fruits of magic. Such a disgusting practice." Another commented.

Raiko emerged from the rubble and scowled at the young witch.

"Oh, there you are! Please don't tell me you're done already. I was hoping you'd have more power!" She pouted.

Raiko's face glowed red with fury, and a blue aura surrounded him. "You're one annoying little bitch! You wanna see power? I'll show you power!"

"Good because I'm getting bored."

He growled and the cinder blocks and rubble all flew upwards along with his body. They all surrounded him and became engulfed in flames once again. This time, what was created was larger and much more menacing, forming the body of a giant dragon. The large dragon made up of bricks and flames shadowed over the city, covering several city blocks with its body alone. The populace and the police all watched in terror at the roaring monster.

"She killed us. That witch killed us all." A fireman uttered.

The girl's eyes were glistening, and she rejoiced at the sight of the behemoth. "Hell yeah! Now this is more like it!"

"You're gonna regret pissing me off !" the dragon roared.

The dragon blasted flames at her. A blue, translucent barrier formed around her body as the flames rushed in, scorching everything else in its path. Alright, now let's make this worthwhile. She thought.

Aurora vanished and reappeared directly above the giant dragon. She aimed the palm of her hand at it and released a cannon of rushing water. The dragon staggered for a moment but flew away from her make-shift hose. She landed on a nearby building and watched the dragon circle around her. The bricks and blocks that formed its body loosened and launched themselves at the girl at a bullets speed. They flew in from all directions and struck her, leaving scuffs and bruises. She started evading the incoming bricks as her wounds from the previous strikes healed. Their pace picked up, forcing her to dodge more erratically. She cracked a smile and vanished again.

The dragon stopped circling and flew off, attempting to anticipate where she'd appeared next. "I'm getting sick and tired of your hocus pocus act! Stop vanishing already!" he roared.

Aurora stood underneath the belly of the beast, and her smile was no longer present. She grew bored and disappointed in his lack of a power jump. She knew this fight was over. "On second thought, this may not be fun after all. This thing can't keep up." She sighed.

She extended her left arm and her aura condensed around it. A blue, translucent, long blade formed and extended outwards. She jumped off the dragon and vanished again. Reappearing directly above the dragon's head, she swung her blade as it grew to the length of its massive body. She split the dragon in two, and once again, its flames ceased, and it crumbled. Raiko fell, with a massive wound cutting through his shoulder and chest. The girl vanished to catch him and reappeared right in front of the city's populace and emergency forces. Raiko was unconscious, bleeding from the wound. His stone gloves ceased its glow, and the flames engulfing a majority of the city also ceased. As the girl gave a smile, the falling stones and bricks from the monster's body crashed into the remains of the city's buildings and streets.

For a moment, everyone was stricken with silence. But what the girl was about to be greeted with wasn't praise and celebration. She was met with outrage and scorn instead. Yelling and words full of hate. Complaints and uproar. The authorities only shook their heads and stared daggers at the girl. Yet she couldn't care less. She could only roll her eyes and hand over Raiko, who just regained consciousness at that moment.

"Why.... why would you stop me? Why for them?" he groaned before passing back out.

One of the policemen stepped forward to formally address the witch. "Look at all that behind you. All of that because of magic users like y-

"Spare me the hate speech. I get it. Just know that I was just doing my job." She replied.

"Letting our city get destroyed and several civilians possibly get hurt!? You could've stopped that sorcerer at any point with your strength, but you let him get stronger? To what avail!?" he barked.

The girl folded her arms and rolled her eyes. "Isn't saving those who may get caught in the crossfires your job? If you guys had been capable of doing it, I wouldn't have had to even come here. So.... who's fault is this again?"

All of them growled in a fury. "Just like your mother! Heartless and don't care who she kills!"

hat statement alone echoed in Aurora's mind. Aurora loved a good fight, but not if it meant being compared to _her._ Not if it meant reliving those horrid days of her youth, even for a split second. The days of hunting, fighting and killing blindly on the behalf of that woman. Her face got hot and she tried her best to hide her grimace. She hopped on her broom and kept from looking back at them.

"Have fun trying to rebuild your city. You're welcome by the way!" she yelled as she took off into the sky.

One of the policemen inspected Raiko's unconscious body and realized his large gloves were missing. "Damn. She took them. Call Colonel Marino already! We'll turn this over to him."

Standing in the middle of the raging crowd of people was a mysterious figure in an all-black hoodie. He watched the event and took notice of Aurora's tattoo before she took off. He smiled, paying particular attention to the direction she was heading in. His crimson eyes glistened at the sight. 


	3. The Pearl Kingdom

A few hours later, the girl was walking the streets of the Pearl Kingdom, back in her favorite hoodie. The kingdom's populace filled the busy streets, coming in all different shapes and sizes. Unicorns pulled carriages with trolls in them. Leprechauns ran ramped in the streets as if they were children. Pixies zipped through the air, dazzling it with sparkles. There were also those who resembled humans heavily, but each person had pointed ears or appendages of a different type of animal (aka, beastmen). These were all magic users or simply put, magical creatures. And upon seeing Aurora, they all greeted her with praises, bows, and some even approached her with flowers. She was loved by all who laid eyes upon her, and the thought of that made her want to vomit.

Trying to get away from the madness, Aurora sped towards a vendor ran a large, round man with pig ears and a pig's nose. He greeted the young girl with a large, sincere smile. "If it isn't Princess Aurora! How are you today?"

She smiled back. "Please Mr. Wiggs, just call me Aurora. And you know, the usual hunting for stone users and what not for your 'highness'."

He laughed delightfully. "Any luck on finding one of the..." Mr. Wiggs stopped and leaned in to whisper to her. "The Divine Sorcerer's Stones?"

Aurora's heart dropped. The Divine Stones nearly slipped her mind, as important as finding them were. Yet, given her track record, it wasn't as if she expected to find any in the first place. "No, not exactly. It just looks like that enchanter I beat only had artificial sorcerer's stones. That makes him the fourth person I saw with some this week." She groaned.

"Ahh, I'm sorry to hear that. But I know just what will cheer you up!" Mr. Wiggs turned around for a brief moment, then faced Aurora once again with an apple on a stick, smothered in glistening, piping hot caramel.

Aurora's eyes beamed while she salivated. "The divine treat created by the Gods themselves. We mortals are too lowly for its glory!" she uttered, still foaming at the mouth.

Mr. Wiggs handed her the caramel apple in exchange for six large gold coins.

"Mr. Wiggs you sure know how to brighten a witch's day!" she said happily.

"Of course! It's always a pleasure serving you Aurora," he replied with a slight bow.

"Hey, hey! Don't say it like that. I'm just a regular witch. Thanks again!" Aurora said with a wink as she walked off and waved goodbye.

She ate her caramel apple happily, but upon seeing the large, fortified castle in the distance, her mood dampened. She grumbled as she marched on, wanting to avoid the lip service she was due to receive.

Within the castle, in a large room covered in marble, Euryale was sitting at her throne, reading several written documents, and listening to her assistant listing reports. He was a blue goblin, named Norman, who was short in stature and had small wings on his back. He was her Royal Rook, one of the highest ranks of the Magic Militia, the army of the magical nations. She rolled her eyes as he went on and one about frivolous requests of civilians and the status of the Magic Council.

"There's been reports from King Arthur that there will be a new member to the Magic Council. His name is Virgil Maro, and I believe he's the new Prime Minister of Dorime over in the Verona continent." Norman reported.

"Another fool amongst my ranks? Why should I care?" Euryale said.

Norman adjusted the collar of his uniform. "Well, milady, he's a new member of the Council, the very Council you're apart of. Another fellow leader of the magical nation! Surely that's important news considering Shiro's and Zeus's absence. Along with Minerva's...you know? Predicament."

"Yes Norman, death is quite the predicament." Euryale rolled her eyes.

"That hasn't been confir-

"Enough!" Unwilling to listen to more of his rambling, she cut him off and began asking about things on the forefront of her mind. "So, still no news about her whereabouts?" Euryale asked.

"Unfortunately, mi 'lady, our battalions have searched all over the Gennomy and Verona continents. She's likely still off the grid. After all, she has been since the end of the Third Great War." Norman replied.

Euryale sighed and glared at Norman. "If it weren't for your team's incompetence to properly track down a cripple, we wouldn't have this situation!"

He shivered with his eyes focused on the ground beneath him. "I apologize for my group's inability, but she's quite elusive an-

"I care not for your sniveling!" Euryale shook her head. "Enough about her for now. Have any of our spies found the whereabouts to the U.M.A's Divine Sorcerer's stone?"

Norman shook more, keeping his silence and internally suffering.

"Do you not speak when addressed? Answer me!"

He stammered, struggling to speak those taxing words. "The-they...They were all intercepted and we found no trace of them after we lost communications! We believe they were ca-captured or...executed."

The goblin eyes slowly arose to be met by Queen Euryale's striking glare. "So, some of our top nights and bishops, who were sent to multiple U.M.A camps, have been intercepted all at once? Why wasn't I notified of this earlier!?" she yelled.

"MI 'lady...my deepest apologies, but I was preoccupied in regrouping the search teams, handling these murder cases and getting the new recruits for the militia an-

"Spare me your excuses! You and the search parties that you put together and ran were unable to complete a single task! Do you know how vexing that is? For a queen such as myself to have such an incompetent espionage and search team? To have any loyalists of any kind fail at tasks I've given them? To lose even more men when we already have so few compared to our enemy!? It's an embarrassment to our kind as magical creatures! An embarrassment to our kingdom! But most of all, an embarrassment to me!"

Euryale extended her hand and water droplets materialized and collided, slowly forming a sword made entirely of water. She pointed the sword at Norman and stepped down from her throne. Norman groveled, getting on his knees and bowing swiftly.

"I apologize on the behalf of our forces ma'am! Please forgive me! I'll accept any punishment you give!" he cried.

Euryale smirked, poking his head with the tip of the blade. "Perhaps you should meet the same fate as our soldiers. Rook or not, you clearly hold little value to me with such feeble results."

Suddenly, the large doors on the other end of the room opened up. With a mostly eaten caramel apple in hand, Aurora walked in, glaring at Queen Euryale. Euryale met eyes with the young teen and sighed. Her sword of water dispersed, and she walked back to her throne. Norman slowly arose and once again met eyes with the Queen.

"Get out," she said coldly to him.

He swiftly scurried past Aurora and out of the room. Aurora finished her apple as she continued glaring down the Queen.

"Now what's with that look my precious daughter?" Euryale asked.

Aurora rolled her eyes. "Euryale, as much as I want to question how you treat your 'subjects', I'm baffled as to why you sent me to Orari, a human city in the south, over these," she said as she tossed the stone-filled gloves to her feet.

Euryale extended her tail and picked up the gloves, examining the gloves with her eyes. "These stones are property of the Magic Council and the Magic Militia. Commoners like Raiko shouldn't even have access to them. I'm sure that empty head of yours forgot to even bring him here, as you were instructed to do."

Aurora scratched her head and laughed nervously. "Oops. My bad."

Euryale sighed once again, with her frustrations mounting. "Even if my subordinates and subjects are lacking, I expect a lot more from my own flesh and blood. Let me guess, you got too excited in the heat of battle? Wanted to make it fun and a challenge?"

"Weelllll..."

Euryale heard enough. Her patience had reached a peak. "You are one of the worst in prioritizing! I give you very simple and easy tasks, given your strengths and skills I instilled into you! Yet, you still find a way to sully the Gorgon name even further!"

Euryale slowly arose her hand, revealing a blue-colored ring that glowed. At the sight of it, Aurora's face went from relaxed to completely pale. Her complete and utter panic was akin to how Norman's was before. "Perhaps you need more discipline, so you can be more useful to me!" Euryale shouted.

Aurora's red tattoo began to glow a shade of blue, and she swiftly covered her neck. However, she decided against punishment and lowered her hand. The glowing ceased, and Aurora sighed of relief.

"I believe you've learned your lesson. Luckily for you, capturing Raiko isn't that high on my priority list. What's most important is gathering all of the Divine Sorcerer's stones. The tools of almost infinite magic, capable of wiping out entire nations. Add them with the two we already have, and not even the large numbers of the U.M.A will stop us. The Gorgon Empire will rise again. But you already knew that." Euryale smiled, looking down at her. "You're free to go. Get lost."

Aurora left the room, utterly frustrated despite not receiving a punishment for her blunder. She marched through the castle and up to her large room. She popped in some earphones from her MP3 player and laid down on her queen-sized bed. She stared up at the mural painting on her ceiling, which featured a large, demon-like woman creature with snakes for hair, extending her arms over the land and all of life below her. Right below the large woman figurehead were three witches: one surrounded by wasps and having wasp wings, one having a scorpion tail, and one surrounded by snakes. Underneath them were humans, all in-chained shackled. The magical creatures (of all shapes and sizes) were depicted as being either citizens or soldiers. What Aurora was gazing at was a mural of the former Gorgon Empire. An empire she knew her mother wanted to recreate with her leading it.

The thought of that made Aurora's skin crawl. She scowled at the sight of the painting and hated everything she knew about Gorgon history. She despised knowing the fact she may be forced to carry on the Gorgon legacy and lead a future empire. What she hated most of all was that she felt she didn't have a choice. That's when she remembered the words of someone dear to her. " _You had a choice. You always had a choice._ " Aurora shivered remembering those words and threw her pillow over her face. She wanted to scream into it. Her anguish would be short-lived, as through the sound of her music, she heard a knocking on the door.

"Come in!" she said.

The door swung open and a young boy around her age walked in with a genuine smile on his face and a metallic flute in his hand. His short, brown hair was parted to the right and he wore an old, traditional band player's outfit as if he came straight out of the medieval period. Aurora struggled to hold back her laughter before bursting into tears. His outfit was completely ridiculous.

"What the HELL are you wearing Orpheus!?" Aurora said.

"Dearest Princess! I, Orpheus Mosiac, have come to relieve thee of the stresses that accompanied thy's conquest!" Orpheus said enthusiastically.

"Orpheus, you know I don't understand moonspeak."

"For whatever could you mean?"

Aurora snickered. "Never mind." She pulled out her headphones and sat up. "What's up? Here to try and serenade me again?"

"Forgive me Princess, but I overheard your verbal ruffle with her grace. I thought thee could use a cheering up in the form of one of my songs." Orpheus said.

Aurora laughed again, veering her eyes into the corner of the room. "I appreciate it, but I'm fine, trust."

"Your lips say that, but those eyes say another. Perhaps your constant servitude of her grave plagues thee mind?"

Aurora got slightly irritated at the fact Orpheus read her so easily. What was he, a regular medic or an empath? "You hit the nail on the head as always. It's just.... really frustrating! I'll never not be her tool, ya know?"

Orpheus walked in and sat next to her. "Is it that you wish to not ber her tool, or actually please her grace?"

Aurora chuckled. "Please her? I don't care what she thinks!"

Orpheus tilted his head. He wasn't convinced in the slightest.

"Besides, it's not like she ever cared what I thought. "

Orpheus walked in and sat next to her. "Thee has never thought highly of her grace. As painful as it would be to yours truly, has thee considered seceding from the royal family? Fleeing the kingdom?"

Aurora laughed again and buried her face in her hands. "I forgot you haven't worked here long." She lifted her head and extended her neck, revealing her scorpion tattoo around her neck. "You see this? This isn't just a tattoo. It's a brand, a curse. So long as I have this, I cannot leave. And that's just one of the two curses I have that I can't wait to get rid of."

"For what would the second curse be?" Orpheus asked.

Aurora held her tongue and clinched her aching chest. The last thing she wanted was to be judged for her _other_ fault. Not to mention she's forbidden from telling anyone. Rather than telling him that, she evaded the question. "Just stupid stuff, you know how it is." she laughed.

"Understood. I pray thee finds what the heart seeks!"

"What I seek is some fun. A good fight would do me wonders! Or an adventure! You know like in books or on TV? At the very least, serving 'her grace' can give me a smidge of that." Aurora said.

Orpheus got up and walked to the window. "The kingdom, no, the world is brimming with plenty of quests to fill the hole in thee's heart. Does thou plan to travel and venture soon?"

Aurora walked to stare outside with Orpheus. The view of the beautifully lit kingdom filled their eyes. "If nothing else, traveling the world would be nice. Not too many places I'm welcome to that I haven't already be-

Aurora stopped short, as something caught her eye. She looked down below, near the front gate of the castle. Aurora saw the guards who normally protect the front gate motionless on the ground. Her heart fell like a pen-drop, and she knew she had to act quickly. "We have to go now!" she said as she grabbed Orpheus's hand and vanished.

Aurora arrived at the scene with Orpheus and Queen Euryale. They stared down at the four defeated guards with profound shock. They were heavily bruised and each of them was dealt a single stab wound on various parts of their bodies. Euryale was filled with disgust. She got on a knee and felt each of their pulses.

"They're alive." She scoffed. Euryale felt them being alive was disrespectful. A mockery made by whoever was responsible. To not give a royal guard an honorable death was something she found worse than leaving them alive.

Aurora noticed their auras weren't closing their wounds like they normally should.

Aurora grabbed Orpheus's shoulder and whispered in his ear. "Orpheus, do your thing."

"At once." 

Orpheus got on a knee near the four collapsed guards and began playing his flute. He was surrounded with a blue aura, and as the beautiful melody continued, that aura encased the four collapsed bodies. Slowly, their wounds began to close and their bruises healed.

Aurora raised an eyebrow, confused as to why whoever attacked them decided to leave them alive. Yet, she felt a slight feeling of excitement. She knew these royal guards to be quite strong, yet not quite as strong as her. Itching for a challenge, she looked to her mother and said, "Whoever did it is likely in the castle! You don't want to dirty your hands with someone like this do you?" Practically begging to let her handle it.

Euryale's eyes widened as she came to a realization. She thought of how what's before her could be a diversion, and how she and Aurora were separated from something else important. "Aurora, who's guarding the Divine Sorcerer's stone in the castle?"

Suddenly, a loud alarm went off inside the castle. Aurora's eagerness turned into worry. "Damn! I'll go now!" She yelled as she vanished.

Aurora reappeared in another room lit with bright red emergency lights flashing. The room was mostly empty aside from a console in the middle of the room. The console, which was supposed to contain a large, glowing, spherical stone was empty. Aurora looked around the spacious room, finding nothing until someone emerged from behind the console, with the stone in their possession. Aurora got a closer look at the person, noticing his all-black hoodie, shorts, and a mask covering most of his face. The most notable of all his features to her was his piercing red eyes. Aurora knew those eyes immediately based on their color and thin pupils. To her, it was like staring at a ghost, but she didn't have time to get choked up about the past.

"So, you're a demon? Must've been skilled to take care of all those guards alo-

Mid-sentence, the boy's fist was already inches before Aurora's face, ready to strike. Yet, he struck nothing but air. The mysterious intruder was disoriented, stumbling forward and frantically looking around until he saw her again on the other side of the room. The two had their eyes fixated on each other.

Aurora's excitement grew once more, marveling at his speed along with his tactics. "You're strong I can tell! Of course, you're going to be punished anyway for trying to steal the stone, but let's have a little bit of fun before then." 

The boy scoffed and spoke for the first time. "I don't have time for these games of yours, Princess."

He removed two black diamonds from his pockets and threw them on the ground, creating a thick black smokescreen. Aurora was blinded, and the intruder took the split second to dash toward the open door behind him. Aurora reached out and fired a blue ray towards the door and filled its opening with a thick case of ice. The intruder stopped dead in his tracks, turning back swiftly and seeing her smile. While glaring at Aurora with profound rage, he felt a slight emptiness in his hand. He looked down and anxiety stabbed his soul. The stone he was holding just a second ago was gone. The intruder looked back to Aurora and saw the stone in her hands. The intruder's fury reached a peak, prompting a growl comparable to that of a panther.

"How? **How!**? Only vampires can get up to speeds like that!" He yelled.

Aurora laughed as she put the stone back inside of the console. "It's not quite speed, but it's also no fun if I just tell you."

From that, he knew Aurora was no slouch like the guards were to him. The tables turned, and now he was trapped. The boy's only way out was through her. Despite the frustration, he cracked a grin. Aurora's teleportation ability and range of magic fascinated him, and the thought of the challenge put him on the same wavelength as his opponent. The intruder reached in his pocket and pulled out a bronze, medium-length dagger. He pointed it directly at Aurora, issuing the challenge.

Aurora's excitement reached a peak. "Like a true knight! Do you have royal blood?" Aurora asked.

He scoffed. "Not in the slightest. But since I hate royals like you so much, nothing will give me more satisfaction than bringing you down in your style!"

"Even if I'm technically a princess, don't expect me to fight like one." Aurora extended her arm to her left and a pink aura extend from her hand, forming a translucent blade. "Before we start, tell me your name."

"There's no fun if I just tell you, remember?" He mocked as he dashed swiftly towards Aurora with his blade.

"En garde!" Aurora yelled. 


	4. The Witch and the Demon

With the security alarms still ringing in their ears, both Aurora and the intruder clashed their blades together, emitting sparks of heated iron. The intruder jumped back, and to Aurora's surprise, vanished a lot like she would with a breeze of wind accompanying it. Now she was the one disoriented, frantically looking around. The only thing she could make out was a black blur, zipping across the large space like a pinball. She stood on her guard, ready for an attack, yet she still was cut on her shoulder with the dagger. Aurora swung her blade, looking silly as she struck nothing but the air.

Aurora couldn't react to the swift cuts the demon dished out. The stinging and bleeding overwhelmed her as she was cut all over her body. Yet, there was never a sense of distress and worry; only growing excitement and eagerness. Aurora placed her hands on the ground, and the ground around her crumbled upwards, forming a bulky-rock-cylinder around her, akin to a well. For a split second, she saw the darting blur right above her, in the opening of her make-shift well. Aurora swiftly threw her hands up, and _BANG!_ A powerful strike of lightning slammed into the intruder, halting his assault and causing him to fall to the ground, dropping his dagger.

Aurora jumped outside of her mini fortress and balled her hands up. "Get up! This is just getting good, so you better not have died from that!"

The intruder got to his feet with his body trembling and his spiky hair now frizzy. He glared at Aurora, yet through his mask, Aurora could tell he had a big ass grin on his face. "You're interesting, I'll give you that. But that won't work agai-

Suddenly, the intruder got cold feet, literally to the point of numbness. He looked down to see his feet completely submerged in ice. He shook to his core, once again contemplating her speed. When the demon finally looked back up, Aurora decked him so hard his mask flew off and his mouth filled with the taste of iron.

"Good, now I can see what you really look like." With a good look at his face, Aurora confirmed his age. He appeared closer to her age of fifteen and didn't have single strand of hair on his face. His spiky hair covering most of his forehead made him appear more like a teen punk. He bared his bloody fangs and glared at Aurora with his piercing, crimson eyes. It was, to her, _too_ familiar. "Cute, but not for long." Aurora followed up with a barrage of punches, with each blow shuttering the demon's body.

"What's wrong!? Do I _hit_ like a princess? Can't fight with your feet planted!?" Aurora boasted as she continued to wale on him.

The demon caught Aurora's fist and squeezed with all his strength. His red aura swelled and circulated around the entire room, twirling like a bloody tornado. His wounds vanished quickly, and his nails and fangs grew sharper. Aurora's wrist crunched as if it were a potato chip, and she screamed in pain. "Not gonna teleport? Oh wait, you can't, can you? Not in all this pain."

Suddenly, the ground beneath them shook, and Aurora could see what looked like black thorns growing from the ground. These large spikes skewered her, piercing both her legs and her torso. Blood dripped down from each piercing, along with from her mouth. She recognized this magic all too well, and couldn't believe it would be used against her again. Her suspicions grew.

The demon wiped the blood from his mouth and spit some out. "Hate to cripple you for life, but it's a lot better than death," he said as he released her broken wrist and walked towards the console. "It's been fun Aurora, it really has. But, unfortunately, I have important shit to do."

As the demon walked towards the console, he heard Aurora chuckling. He turned toward her with an elevated brow. 

"You have an interesting power. Please, tell me your name. I have to know it." Aurora desperately hoped it was just a coincidence, and that it wasn't _that clan._

"You're asking me this shit again? Did you think that mask was for nothing?" he barked back.

"Worth a shot," she replied while cracking her neck. Injury aside, she did not want to let her ill-reminiscence cause her to miss out on a grand battle. With her non-broken hand, Aurora created her witch-blade, a multi-colored translucent blade extended through her hand made entirely of aura. She cut the skewers from her legs and torso. Her pulling the skewers out of her body felt as if she was removing knives stuck deep in her flesh. Each removal felt more gruesome and her blood began to color the marble floor beneath her. Aurora stumbled forward and her legs felt like jelly, as if they were on fire and wet at the same time. Despite that pain though, she remained on her feet and managed to smear that cocky smile back on her face. "I can just beat it out of you."

"That's an interesting way to phrase that." the demon replied. Despite her breaking free, he was very much at ease. The once-powerful witch was now rendered to a bloody mess that could barely stand. Even with her pesky teleportation ability, she stood no chance with no mobility. And her aura must've been running low due to the wounds and the amount of magic she's used, he believed. Atop it all, her wrist was broken on her dominant arm. She was better off standing down.

Aurora felt a powerful thumping in her chest. The bubbling and boiling of her blood. The jolt of power surging through her. With that, all of her cuts and wounds instantly disappeared. Her wrist twisted back into place, like it was never broken. The demon stumbled back as if a strong breeze had smacked him head on.

"The fuck!?" he yelled.

"What, did you think you were the only one?" Aurora said softly.

The atmosphere changed once again, and Aurora was surrounded by a thick, twirling aura. It started off blue, before turning bloody red, similar to the demon's. The pupil in her right, red eye turned thin, almost mimicking the demon in front of her. Her teeth turned into fangs and her nails turned into claws. She was clearly not an ordinary witch.

"You- No. It can't be! You're no demon! A witch can't use demon aura! That's...impossible!" he freaked.

"We live in a world of magic. **_Anything_** is possible. So, why don't we have some more fun!" she replied in a demonic, distorted tone.

The intruder was confused and distraught, so much so that he could only laugh. "Unbelievable! You sure know how to flex your power. Fine! It's about time I went all out anyway."

The demon's aura escalated again, and the room was a hurricane of red aura. Both combatants stood with their blood rushing and their muscles tightening. The demon got on all fours and his hair flickered around like a flame. "I'll show you what a _real_ demon can do," he growled. _The amount of aura spent to heal those injuries will have her vulnerable. Demon aura or not, she won't last long. I have to drag this out._

"Come!" Aurora yelled.

The red-light show ceased and the air became still. They prepared to launch at each other, but, the double doors that were previously frozen shut came crumbling down. Both Aurora and the intruder broke concentration and watched as several armed magical creatures came rushing in. Walking slowly behind them was Queen Euryale, sporting a golden combat armor and a long, scarlet sword.

"Shit!" the demon said to himself. Aurora was strong enough, but Euryale and her guards were a crowd he knew he couldn't handle alone.

Euryale pointed to the intruder with her sword. "Bring me his head."

Willing to abandon the stone in exchange for his life, the demon jumped back up and swiftly aimed his hand at the back wall. For a moment, he looked back at Aurora, who was visibly disappointed. A black skewer emerged from his hand and fired at the back wall like a missile. The loud boom along with the wall crumbling, leaving a large hole and filling the room with a dust cloud, provided the intruder with his exit. He swiftly dashed out of the opening with the guards hot on his tail.

Aurora's beastly features vanished. She caught the eye of the weapon the demon was once using a few feet away from her on the ground. Aurora ran to it and picked it up, examining it for a brief second. She then looked over at the spikes that pierced her from the ground. There was no mistaking it. The last time she'd seen them was during that incident. Yet, before then, she'd see that kind of magic every day.

Just three years ago, Aurora was within the forests of the outer kingdom, sparring with a young girl around her age. This young girl sported the same scarlet eyes, fangs, and claws of any demon. She wore all black and brought the same intensity with every punch as Aurora did. The two girls grinned from ear to ear in the exchange.

"Alright 'Roura! Let's turn it up now!" The demon girl said.

"Alright Alicia, but don't blame me if you get burned!" Aurora chimed as she blasted balls of fire in her direction. 

"Lame and unfunny!"

Alicia swiftly dodged and fired black thorns from her hands in the form of missiles. Aurora created a translucent bubble around her and the thorns bounced off. With their magic, the forest area they were in was rendered to a construction site in mere minutes. After their match, the two laid on their backs and stared into the cloudy sky. 

"Someone's getting stronger! Keep it up and I may recruit you to the ops." Alicia laughed.

"Getting stronger? I totally won that fight! And you know I can't join your freedom fighting group."

"C'mon 'Roura think about it! You as a Skewer Operatie and me as a leader? Along with the gang? We'd be freakin' unstoppable! Not even the Queen could touch us."

Alicia saw Aurora's smile vanish and watched as she turned away from her. Alicia sat up. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

"Mean what? She's a bitch, trust me I get it."

The two of them snickered

"But seriously 'Roura, don't you want better? You sure as hell deserve it."

"Do I? Not like I haven't ended lives like she did." 

"Hey now! You only did those things cuz she wanted! Don't sell yourself short just cuz of the past. You better not mope out on me again. I'll beat the tears out of you; you know I will."

"Ahh. I'm terrified." Aurora rolled her eyes.

"You should be!" Alica pounced on Aurora and started to tickle her. Aurora burst into uncontrollable laughter, begging her to get off.

"Okay, okay I give, I give!" Aurora pleaded.

"Done moping now? Good." Alica beamed. "Next time you get sad, I'll do more than just tickle you. And if someone else makes you sad, I'll destroy them! It'll hurt too, like a lot!" she said as she cracked her knuckles.

"You're such a moran sis." Aurora chuckled.

Days like that were brighter, more vibrant to Aurora. Regardless of what it was, Alicia always had her back and was the one person she could turn to for anything. That was until that fateful day.

Aurora's reminiscence snapped with the ringing of her mother's demands in her ears. "What the hell are you doing? Quit picking daisies and go after him!"

She glared at her mother before following the guards on there pursuit. Suddenly, they heard some more loud bangs, mimicking explosions. Aurora came running in the other room to see what happened. All of the soldiers Euryale sent after them were no longer running, but standing, gazing at the space. Aurora got a closer look and was distraught. On the floor, ceiling, and the walls on opposite sides of the room, there were large gaping holes, similar to the one that lead to the room.

"Where'd he go!?" Aurora asked one of them.

"I think he went up? No, down? It all happened so fast; I don't know!" he cried.

Euryale came in and erupted. "You are all USELESS! Search everywhere! Split up if you have to! He couldn't have left the castle yet. Find him now!

"Sir!" they all said as they split and searched each opening.

Aurora summoned her broom and hopped on. As she looked at the holes that the demon left behind, she grew a big grin. Not only could he match her combat wise, but he was also an escape artist. A strategist. The thought of it was everything Aurora looked for in an opponent. Yet the idea of him being who she thought stuck in the back of her mind. She wanted purely to battle him, but just for the fun of it, and prayed it would have nothing to do with what happened a year ago. She took off on her broom and put everything into finding him.

An hour passed, and the search of Euryale's castle came up empty. Queen Euryale was back in her throne, looking down upon Aurora and the other guards behind her. Everyone in the room was avoiding Euryale's death glare, all except her daughter, who's eyes were in a deadlock with her mother's.

"I hope you had fun, daughter. Because of you constantly putting your own self-indulgence over your tasks, a potentially dangerous demon is now loose in the streets of my kingdom." Euryale said calmly.

Aurora crossed her arms and looked away. "We have the stone don't we? The goal was to protect the Mutate Stone, and that I did." she mumbled.

Euryale closed her eyes with blatant irritation. "My guards, leave us. This will be a family only discussion."

"Sir!" all the guards said as they saluted and exited the room.

Once everyone left the room, Euryale stepped down from her throne and approached the young witch. "You were once obedient. Capable of accomplishing any and every task I gave you at such a young age many years ago. You were the perfect weapon. Just as I designed you to be."

Aurora's eyebrows lowered on the last word: weapon. Just hearing that used in reference to her made her stomach turn. "I never asked to be your weapon. If you're such a great demi-god, why do you need me?"

Euryale's blue ring lit up along with Aurora's tattoo coiled around her neck. Before Aurora could react, Euryale balled her hand into a fist and a streak of glowing tattoos lit up around Aurora's body. Aurora's body felt as if it was being carved from the inside out. Her skin felt like it was engulfed in flames. All her bones were crunching, turning, and converging all on each other. Her muscles were being torn apart and put back together at the same time. She rolled on the ground, scratching at her own skin and screaming bloody murder that could be heard throughout the castle.

"There was a time where things like this were never a worry for you. Yet here you are. All because of your greed. Because of your foolish desires. And that disrespectful, foul attitude." Euryale said as she stood over her suffering daughter.

Euryale untightened her fist and Aurora's glowing tattoos vanished. Aurora's pain subsided and she lied flat on her stomach with drool dripping from her mouth. Euryale propped Aurora's chin up with the tip of her heel so the two would meet eyes. Aurora's were heavy and halfway shut.

In a sinister, yet soft tone, Euryale said, "But that's perfectly fine because you're going to correct your folly. You're going to find that demon and bring him to me. And you're going to do it before dawn, like the good princess you are. Do you understand, Aurora Gorgon?"

Euryale pulled her foot back and walked off. "I'm going to file reports and see to the castle damages. Get your shit together and do what you were made to," she said as she left the room.

The amount of hell going through Aurora's head was unimaginable. There were two things that were at the forefront of her mind. One was the anticipation of being free of the scorpion's poison. The other was doubt that she may be cursed to forever be the queen's blade. It was always like this for her. Even if Aurora did everything her mother asked, she'd always end up in the same spot: on the ground in both pain and a puddle of her own tears. Aurora thought, were her desires that bad? It was remembering a certain someone that she was reassured it wasn't, and that someone was directly tied to the demon she just had her encounter with.

Meanwhile, outside of the castle, the demon was hiding between lively streets of the Pearl Kingdom. He stood in a dark, void alleyway, slamming his hand into a building wall in frustration. He knew he made a fatal mistake.

"Losing sight of the goal for some skirmish? The hell am I, five!?"

The demon reached into his pocket and pulled out a photograph. The photo itself was very dingy and was partially covered in dry bloodstains. The photo had three people: an older, middle-aged woman with long black hair, a short young girl with brown hair, and a much younger version of himself (appearing to be around seven years old). The thoughts of his mother's tender smile whenever he'd return home with his best friend was enough to nearly bring him to tears. The days spent on the hillside of their village sparring or hunting for food. The memories of helping around his small, run-down village. The days of getting lessons on controlling demon aura from his village chief. Those days spent with them was much simpler and now gone. He almost shattered his sharp teeth with how hard he clenched them and grabbed his chest while staring at the photo.

After reminiscing, the demon looked back at the castle, seeing several dragons circling the castle and hearing the alarm still screaming. The demon put on his hood and walked away from the castle for the time being, wanting to lay low while chaos ensued.

While walking, he saw an assortment of TV's inside of a store, all of them showing the local news. They showed images of the castle live, with the dragons still circling it. The anchor giving the news was a sorcerer with really large, pointy ears and slick, blue hair. she reported,

_"Citizens are warned to head caution as the intruder who invaded Gorgon Castle and attempted to steal one of her treasures is still on the run and very dangerous. Eye witnesses of a short demon boy with spiky black hair, crimson red eyes, and an all-black hoodie is advised to call the police or contact the Magic Militia immediately. Those who do are eligible for compensation by Queen Euryale herself."_

_Oh great, more of a reason to hide,_ he thought. He walked with a purpose, still hiding his face.

As he walked off, a sinister presence of two watched from the shadows of a back alleyway. These two beings were both abnormally large, almost the size of the buildings they were between, yet went unnoticed in the darkness. This pair just finished seeing the news broadcast and the prime suspect speed walk down the streets. They couldn't help but smile and giggle with their low, deep voices.

Back at Gorgon castle, Euryale's forces were working on the cleanup with Euryale's supervision. While they were examining the wreckage and using magic to try and reseal the crumbled walls, they picked up several black skewers or thorns. These thorns were hard as steel and were a bit heavy for their size. One of Euryale's guards shuttered once they came across a possible explanation.

"Mi'lady. These thorns, and the demon's overwhelming combat ability. Only one specific demon class was capable of producing thorns as a unique power. Do you think it could be...?" he asked.

Euryale went to examine the thorn herself. She took it from the guard and brought it closer to her face. "No mistaking it. This is a product of those pesky Skewer Ops, belonging to the Furasaku clan."

Everyone in the room gasped in utter disbelief. "That's impossible! They were all wiped out over a single night! There's no way there was a survivor, is there?" some of them said.

Euryale tossed the thorn aside and crossed her arms. "Furasaku or not, he will be captured either by the people, the police or by my daughter. She should have the proper motivation to perform up to expectations, especially if he is a Furasaku."

As fate would have it, her daughter was listening in from behind a nearby wall, completely unnoticed. If that boy was who they said, she had to find him first. Euryale would likely just kill him if they found him first, and Aurora couldn't live with herself if that happened. Aurora felt that finding him and clearing things up was the least she could do. At the same time, another encounter of blows sounded just as appealing.  


In a heap, she left the castle, hopped on her broom, and took to the skies. She visually surveyed the streets of the Pearl Kingdom, searching between each villa, building, and vendor. Unable to find the hooded demon after ten minutes of searching, Aurora stopped to consider options for her next move. _Think girl. If I were a demon looking to steal the divine stone, where would I hide?_ The more she pondered it, the more frustrated she'd get, to the point of pulling her hair out. "Ughh! As if that would help me!" she screamed in frustration.

Suddenly, Aurora heard a _BOOM_ in the distance and saw a small mushroom, flame-lit smoke cloud arise. Aurora smirked and tightened her grip on her broomstick. "Just finding ways to look for trouble, eh demon boy? Yet another thing we have in common!" Aurora then took off with a sonic boom through the sky.

The scene Aurora was headed to was a warzone. Several villas surrounding a statue of Queen Euryale were completely destroyed and lit ablaze. People were either fleeing or hiding as several carts and buildings were ravaged by two beings the size of them. These behemoths were two male giants, one with long, spiky hair flowing down his back, and the other bald. Both of them were twenty feet tall and bulky with cut and defined muscles throughout their bodies. The bald giant, named Kaji, wore what seemed like a giant biker jacket and black leather pants. The longer haired giant, Raji, was shirtless, but wore black leather pants like the other.

The two giants laughed and marched towards a pile of decimated wood, bricks, plaster, and concrete. Kaji was clearly the leader of the two, stepping before his brother. "That ain't all ya got is it? We just getting started, right bro?"

"Yeah bro, fun just start! Fun must go on!" Raji added on with a clap.

Red aura pierced from the rubble before bursting upward in a mini-explosion. The young demon emerged with his hood off and his scratches and wounds healing. "Listen here bozos. You should forget the bounty and leave, before things get ugly."

The giants laughed once again. "This ain't about the bounty kid. Or rather, not _that_ bounty." Kaji added on.

The demon's eyebrow arose, but he knew these two bulky bastards weren't backing down. He got into his fighting stance and reached towards the sheath on his hip. When his hand grabbed nothing but air, his heart sank to his feet and his eyes widened. His long dagger was gone. He shook for a moment and his throat caved in. _When!? When did I lose it?_ The demon then remembered his tussle with Aurora in the castle, and almost had a panic attack. I _have to go back! If nothing else I refuse to leave this kingdom without I-_ Mid-thought, the demon's face was smacked hard by Raji's fist, sending him tumbling through the flame covered streets.

The demon slowly got up with the large shadows of the giants cast over him. They both grinned and chuckled while looking at him. "You're gonna be one valuable key to getting to the queen, boy." Kaji said. "Grab him."


	5. Raji and Kaji

Jason sat up, watching one of them cast their giant palms over him. Seeing an opening between their large bodies, he dashed past them, leaving behind a gust of wind and the two giants confused. Jason was equally confused from Kaji's words. For if not the bounty, what else could they desire from the queen? Why would they need him to do it? The time to think was shortened, as the only thing on the young demon's mind was an escape. Heavily guarded or not, that dagger was one thing he could not afford to leave behind.

"What the?" Raji said, disoriented. "Oh no bro! He's getting away! Our shot at reinstatement!"

Kaji smacked his brother in the back of his head. "Yeah cuz YOU let em' get away foo! Now we'll never get in big-time with _you know who!_ "

The demon looked back at them with a grin on his face. There was a brief moment of satisfaction for him, making them look foolish. With two men the size of houses, there was no feasible way they could move fast enough to catch him at this point. Yet, this satisfaction would quickly turn into an overwhelming panic. Behind the giants, three beings tried sneaking behind them slowly. From what the demon could see, it was a small family of three people: the mother, a young girl, and a young boy (both toddlers). Each of them had brown hair, dog ears, and a bushy tail. The demon came to a screeching halt and stared back at them.

The two giant brothers took notice to the demon's stoppage and pondered. "Hey bro?" Raji asked. "What he doin? Why he stop running?"

"Who knows. If he come back wantin' a fight then good fo us!" Kaji responded.

When the all seemed silent, a loud SNAP echoed. The giants turned to see the small family and the boy whose foot was between two broken pieces of wood. The demon boy and the small family alike all became cold-blooded when the giants laid eyes on them.

"Well would ya look what the pound dragged in?" Kaji said.

"Bro it's little puppies! You think we could get to the Queen wit sum hostages?" Raji asked.

The mother stood in front of her shivering, crying children. While still fear-stricken by the dementing smile of the two giants, she still managed to bare her fangs and claws at them. The brown hair on her head and dog ears stood as she growled and shielded them.

"A mother protective of her pups. Ye, bro you may be on to somethin'. May not be the demon boy, but the Queen would fold if her subjects are threatened." Kaji said.

The image of this shook the demon boy to his core. A familiar, disturbing image flashed into his mind, featuring the same people from his photograph. He frantically looked between the giants inching in on the defenseless family and the castle where he left the dagger that was oh so dear to him. It was one of the worst possible crossroads he could find himself in.

Kaji grabbed the mother by her arm, who screamed at her kids to run as fast as they could. Kaji dangled the mother in the air by her wrist as she scratched his hand with her free claw. While still immersed in fear and tears, the two children prepared to turn and flee. Before they could, Raji stomped behind them and shielded their escape route. Raji towered over them and bared his jagged, moss-covered teeth over their heads. "Where do ya think you're goin?" Raji asked, blowing his garbage breath onto them. The two kids both screamed out and hugged each other.

"Alright, let's head for Gorgon Castle, bro." Kaji said.

Suddenly, a black thorn flew in and through Kaji's forearm, prompting an agonizing scream and for him to drop the mother. The mother fell to her feet and ran to grab her children, while Raji looked around confused. Kaji grabbed his bleeding forearm and turned towards the demon boy, who was rushing at him at full speed. The demon boy rushed under Kaji and sliced his leg with another black thorn. Kaji fell to his knees, groaning in agony. Raji stood looking foolish and baffled. The demon rushed and shielded the family of three.

"You wanted me right? Leave. Them. Out of this." the demon threatened.

Kaji's wounds slowly closed as he got back on his feet, completely unphased. "Aww would you look at that," Kaji teased, "demon-boy wanna be brave like a little hero. Ain't it cute?"

Kaji stomped hard on the ground, causing a miniature earthquake. The demon and the family all stumbled and lost their footing. As they struggled, the two giant brothers rushed toward them. "Hope he knows what happens to most heroes!" Raji said as they both chuckled. Unable to get his feet under him to help the civilians escape, the demon was as defenseless as them. Raji and Kaji's big, bulky fists swung in on the demon. He crossed his arms to guard and for a moment, closed his eyes to prepare for the inevitable impact.

Two seconds passed and the shaking stopped. The demon slowly opened his eyes and saw himself looking down at the two giants from high above. He looked around frantically and saw the family behind him, equally confused. After closer inspection, he realized they were on a building. A familiar and unsettling feeling surrounded him.

"Mommy, mommy!", the little girl pointed upwards, "Look! She's here!!"

They all looked up to see Aurora descending on her broom with a smile on her face. The feeling the demon felt became very bittersweet. He felt it unusual to be saved, especially by someone he crossed swords with.

"You!", the demon said.

"Yes, it is I! Did you miss me?" Aurora laughed as she hopped off her broom.

Naturally, the demon readied his guard.

"Woah, woah, woah! Relax will ya? Is that any way to treat someone who just saved you from becoming roadkill?" Aurora said.

The demon crossed his arms and growled. "Thanks," he said reluctantly.

Aurora looked back to the family, who were all smiling radiantly at her. She smiled back and assured them of their safety. "We'll take care of things from here. I'll use displacement to send you somewhere safer in the kingdom."

"Thank you so much, both of you! You two are very brave." the mother said with a bow. "Please be careful Princess Aurora and...I'm sorry young man, I don't believe I caught your name."

The demon blushed, scratched his head and sighed. "It's....it's Jason."

"Thank you, Jason." The mother said. "Kick those bullies butts!" the young boy said.

Aurora aimed her hand at them and the three of them vanished. She then redirected her attention to the demon. "Jason eh? Either you suck at making aliases of you're a cheap-ass for telling them your name and not me!"

"Cheap-ass!? It's not an alias, it's my real name! Jason Furasaku!" he yelled, before immediately covering his mouth. _Like a fucking child telling on himself. Smooth Jason, smooth._

Her worries were coming to fruition. But she refused to think about that at that moment. "It's okay, it doesn't kill for me to know your name. Besides, we have much bigger problems right now."

"Because they're giants? Cute."

They both looked down at the two brothers who were engaged in a heated argument.

"You had one job Raji. One fuckin job! How'd you let all four of em get away!?" Kaji barked, smacking him again.

"C'mon bro you saw it. They was here. Then they were gone. Like, Aba-cadabra!"

"Abra cada- no. Enough. Now we have no hostages and no bounty on demon boy. If we don't find a way to get close enough to the queen to squash her, we're gonna stay nobodies. You wanna keep bein a nobody Raji?" Kaji said.

"No bro. Big time! Big time with Me-"

Kaji rushed to cover his brother's mouth. "Idiot, you can't mention _you know who_ by name out here!" he whispered. "Look, it's possible the queen could be out and about herself to find the demon. So, if we make enough racket, destroy enough buildings, kill enough people then, we could lure her."

"Oh yeah! Big time! You're so smart bro." Raji smiled.

"One of us gotta be. Now stretch and let's go."

Aurora and Jason watched, hearing most of the conversation. Aurora couldn't contain her laughter. "They're so stupid it hurts! They think they can take Euryale on? And they think she cares about a few citizens?"

"Even if she doesn't, those two will still destroy the kingdom and kill a lot of people! We can't let that happen!" Jason stated.

Aurora stopped and turned back to him. She remembered seeing him protect those innocent people, when originally meaning to flee. "You're not just a common thief are you? Not just some demon looking for power?"

Jason scoffed. "The stone isn't something I seek for just power." He paused briefly, remembering his goal. "Look, it's not that important right now. What's important is stopping them and protecting as many innocent people as possible. If you aren't goanna help or if you're here to fight me, wait 'til after I'm done." he said as he walked towards the edge of the building.

Aurora grabbed his shoulder. "Hold your horses, cowboy. As uhm. Ugh. As 'princess', She said using air-quotes, "I can't allow innocents in this kingdom to fall to the hands of oversized morons. Besides, I can't finish our fight if you screw up and get squashed."

"Okay great. Let's go kick their ass then I'll kick yours after." Jason smiled.

"Oh! Almost forgot!" Aurora said, reaching behind her.

Jason pondered what she was doing up until she pulled out a very familiar item. She handed him his bronze dagger. Jason's face lit up and his heart did a long jump. He was relieved and wanted nothing but to thank her, yet he was speechless.

"It would be hard for a knight to fight comfortably without his blade." Aurora said with a radiant smile.

Jason grabbed the blade and nodded. With little time to waste, the two prepared to leap down and take out the rampaging giants. "You take out the dumb one and I'll get his brother."

"Which one?"

The two of them laughed simultaneously and jumped off the platform.

As the two giants marched towards the rest of the untouched kingdom, Aurora and Jason crashed feet-first onto the ground, catching their attention.

"A meteor!?" Raji screamed.

"No dufus, ain't no way." Kaji said.

The dust settled, revealing Jason and Aurora standing side by side. Upon seeing Aurora and her tattoo, the two brothers grinned from ear to ear. Kaji began laughing. "Look bro. The queen's daughter and the bounty standin' side by side. You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?"

"Two fo one deal? Hehe, yeah let's get em'!" Raji laughed.

Aurora created a witch blade and both her and Jason got into their respective fighting stances. "Let's carve our faces on their backs!" Aurora said.

"You're a sadist."

The two giants got in a sumo-wrestler like stance. They both arose one of their feet and slammed it into the ground, causing the entire kingdom to shake and for the ground beneath them to crumble. The dust arose, yet Aurora and Jason were no longer in view.

"What the!? Where'd they go!?" Raji panicked.

Suddenly, both giants felt a stinging, burning pain on their backs. Aurora and Jason had their respective blades lodged inside their back plates. They both pulled them out and blood spewed from the wound.

"Think that did anything?" Jason asked.

Raji and Kaji shook them off like fleas and their wounds vanished. The giants both picked up the pace and began swinging at the witch and demon pair. Each punch decimated the ground or a nearby building completely. They destroyed Euryale's statue in the middle of the neighborhood and left only a path of destruction. Both Jason and Aurora remained on the run, only able to get in small attacks with their speed and their blades. Each wound they dealt would heal almost immediately after. Both Jason and Aurora distanced themselves and caught their breath.

"How much aura do they have!? They're bound to be running low by now!" Jason panted.

"Whether they run low or not won't matter if they manage to hit us. They may be starting to interest me." Aurora said.

Raji and Kaji ran towards them viciously, shaking the ground with each step.

"Your ice magic. Aurora, can you freeze something that big!?" Jason asked.

"I could...but that's no fun."

"Okay great le- wait, WHAT!?"

The giants stopped suddenly and stomped the ground again. Aurora and Jason prepared to jump, however, their feet began to sink into the ground beneath them like they were in quicksand.

"Sittin ducks now." Raji laughed.

Kaji cracked his knuckles. "Yeah, let's squash em."

Jason and Aurora struggled to move and began sinking more and more into the ground. "No fun? You can't be serious!", Jason yelled, "We need to end this as fast as possible! Can you teleport us out of this bind!?"

"Actually, displacement won't work on me if I'm bounded like this. Sorry." Aurora chuckled.

"Now isn't the time to be saying sorry!" Jason panicked, noticing the giants getting closer and closer.

Jason tried pushing himself up, with his torso sinking. His aura flared up and he used all his strength, but to no avail. "C'mon battle whore, there's gotta be another trick up your damn sleeve! If there is then you better use it now!"

"Battle-whore!? Rude!" Aurora rolled her eyes. "Fine." Aurora closed her eyes and the ground beneath the two began to rise. The pair shot up through the quicksand standing on rising pieces of the earth. It was as if two miniature plateaus spurred from the ground. The pair stared down on the giants. Jason sat on the platform and sighed of relief before glaring at Aurora.

Raji and Kaji both growled in frustration. "No fair! Earth magic is our thing!" Raji complained.

They both looked up at the two earth pillars. "We should climb it, grab them, and slam em on the ground," Kaji suggested.

"Hehe. Yeah!" Raji said as the two of them jumped on and began climbing.

"Phew. Close one right?" Aurora giggled.

 _Water magic, earth magic, teleportation, and demon aura. Just what kind of person has this many magic types?_ "Aurora. IF we fuck around with these two, people WILL die!" Jason explained.

"Yeah, yeah I know. But I won't let anyone die! Just wanted to have a little fun with them ya know?"

"You're truly unique for a 'princess'." Jason stood back on his feet. "Look, I can take them down myself, but I rather not kill them. But you can take them down quickly without killing them. You know, with your magic?"

Aurora sighed. "That's so boring!!"

Jason grabbed the space between his eyebrows. "Look, you want a fight? I'll fight you to the death AFTER we contain dumb and dumber. Besides...I still need that stone."

Aurora grinned. "You mean it? Because I don't want to be interrupted again. I wanna go all out!"

Jason noticed the two giants getting closer and closer to them. "Yeah whatever you want princess so hurry up!!"

Aurora's excitement shot higher than the pillars she created. She closed and aimed her hands at the two giants.

"Wait! Don't kill them Aurora!" Jason chimed.

"I won't. Calm your tits."

Powerful waves of rushing waters sprayed out like geysers from Aurora's hands and hit the two giants directly. They both yelled as the water blasted them back into the ground below. Raji and Kaji struggled to get back up, as the force of the water was much more powerful than them. As they guzzled and struggled in the rushing water, Aurora closed her hands and the water ceased its flow. The water instantly froze solid, creating a cold, icy mist around it.

"Done." Aurora said nonchalantly.

The earth pillars she created descended back into the ground, and the pair stared at the giants submerged in ice. The ice structure looked like a geyser or water fountain was frozen over the winter. Despite the ugly and distressed faces of the giants, it was a beautiful sight to behold.

"I present to you, idiots on ice!" Aurora said with a bow.

Playing along, Jason clapped. "Quite the creation!"

"Now without further a-do." Aurora said as she gained distance between them. "For the main event." she said getting in her fighting stance.

"You want to fight here? We can fight somewhere else; maybe somewhere more spacious?" _And around less civilians and witnesses._

"But look around! The flames, destroyed buildings, crumbled gravel! It's like a fighting game stage! A perfect place for our fight!" Aurora said ecstatically.

"A fighting game stage? The hell is-never mind forget it." Jason sighed and shook his head. "You're somethin' else, you know that?" He took out his dagger and pointed it to her once again. "Your magic is remarkable. I haven't fought many witches or sorcerers, but I never seen magic as versatile as yours. But regardless, I'm still taking you down."

Aurora smiled, ready for a great fight. However, she felt a chill run down her spine and her eyes widened. She remained silent, and signaled for Jason to make the first move; giving him the finger gesture that said 'come here'.

"So powerful, yet so arrogant!" Jason yelled as he charged in at full speed.

With his blade inches within Aurora's face, she swiftly grabbed his wrist and sent a powerful electric shock through his body. Jason spazzed out, unable to move. Then, Aurora vanished, reappeared behind him and kicked him onto the ground. To Jason's surprise, Aurora pinned him to the ground with her foot and put his hands behind his back. "The hell?" Jason thought. Aurora threw a pair of scarlet-colored handcuffs around his hands. Jason turned his head to see the excitement on Aurora's face misplaced with a cold hard glare, mimicking that of Euryale's.

"For your crimes against the Queen of the Pearl Kingdom, Jason Furasaku, you are under arrest." 


	6. Ambitions

Jason squirmed relentlessly, trying his hardest to break the cuffs placed around his wrists. "The hell is this!? Why!?"

"Silence! You are to keep your mouth shut and only answer to the Queen herself." Aurora replied. "Speaking of..."

While on the ground, Jason redirected his attention forward to see the feet of the royal guards and Queen Euryale herself. She looked around the area before directing her attention back to Aurora. "I see you completed your task."

"Indeed. And I see you came all the way out here, despite me having everything under control." Aurora replied.

Euryale chuckled slightly. "Considering the tremors and the damage left behind, I wouldn't call it 'under control.' All the same, I find it coincidental the attempted thief and those two meddlesome giants were in the same area."

Aurora looked down at Jason for a moment, who was already giving her the evil eye. "Not only were they in the same area. Those three were accomplices. They all conspired to steal the divine stone. The giants attacking civilians was a ploy to draw you out while demon boy here storms the castle again with his speed."

"WHAT!?" Jason yelled. Jason squirmed even more to break free of Aurora's foot, but the pressure only increased the more he moved.

Euryale stroked her chin and smirked. "Another diversion and it damn near worked. Not bad Furasaku. That is your name, right?"

Jason stopped for a moment and avoided the Queen's stare. He could feel his rage swelling inside of him. Despite the circumstances in addition to his blunders, he'd never felt more betrayed. This girl who appeared friendly, was willing to help him protect others, and saved him not only is turning him over but lied about his crime. Just when he thought she wasn't just another royal snob. The thought of this caused his jaw to clench and set his demonic aura ablaze.

"Oh? Still some fight in this one, eh?" Aurora smiled.

"Give up, foolish demon. There's nothing you can do that won't result in a quick and pointless death." Euryale said.

Jason smirked, catching Aurora's attention. She swiftly jumped away from him. Six giant skewers, almost the size of him, spiked out of his back and broke his cuffs with ease. He sprung to his feet and swiftly grabbed his dagger. Jason had but one goal: escape. With Euryale, the royal guards, and Aurora to deal with, the odds were stacked against him. Nonetheless, he knew capture was worse than a potential beat-down at the hands of them. He sprung forward at the queen with all of his strength and speed and prepared to attack with his dagger. However, with a swift swing of her scorpion tail, Jason dug his feet under him to stop his momentum. He narrowly evaded the strike with only a cut on his cheek.

Jason sighed of relief. _That could've been my head. No healing from that._ "I guess I have no choice but to take you all o-

Before he could finish declaring war, his vision distorted. Jason's entire body went numb and he fell to the ground like a weight, slowly losing consciousness. The image of Aurora walking over the Queen's side and her frowning back at him burned into both Jason's mind. She appeared almost as if she were sad. His vision went pitch black.

********************

Jason slowly opened his eyes to the bright sun beaming down on him, and a vibrant blue sky. The warm, green grass poked into his arms and back. He looked at his arms and legs and found himself covered in dirt, soot, and scratches. He saw his bronze dagger was stuck blade-first into the ground before him.

Jason felt groggy and tense, so he stretched and sat up. "Where am I?" he asked.

His eyes widened once he looked upon the horizon. Small buildings and various houses surrounding by large, thick green trees just beyond the green hills. Jason felt a sensation that just screamed 'home'. A warm, sincere smile grew on his face. The warm feeling Jason felt came to a screeching halt when hearing the yelling of his name tearing his eardrums apart.

Jason sprung to his feet and grabbed his dagger out the ground. He stayed on his guard, awaiting an attack. Without warning, a whip coiled around his ankle and pulled him off his feet. He fell back on his backside and was staring back at the sky again. The sun was eclipsed by a person aiming a skewer to his neck, very similar to ones he could create.

"Still falling for the same ol' tricks, eh JayJay?" a young, feminine voice teased.

Jason's eyes focused in as he squinted them. He saw a pair of eyes the same as his, slightly covered by short, brown bangs. The person pinning him down smiled and let up. With them no longer as close, Jason made out who was before him with a devilish grin. It was a young girl, around his age, that he knew for a very long time. She wore an all-black uniform (a tracksuit style jacket with a black combat skirt, on the back having the character '串'). The black whip that was wrapped around his ankle retracted back into the palm of her hand.

Jason was filled with warmth and joy upon seeing her, yet he frowned all the same. "I told you to stop calling me that Fasha! It sounds silly!"

"But that's your name JayJay." Fasha laughed. The whip around Jason's ankle retracted back into the palm of her hand and she tossed aside the skewer. She put her hands on her hips and stood directly over Jason. "Maybe if you stop falling for childish tricks, then I wouldn't have to treat you like one!"

Jason rolled his eyes and helped himself up. "It's not like you're some type of evil monster that I have to worry about. I'd like to think I can let my guard down around you."

"What guard?" she asked before punching him hard in the stomach. Jason hunched over and groaned in pain. "You know good and well I'm the better fighter between us. Yet you still are so laxed and carefree around me. What if I weren't me and disguised as me? Wait, does that make sense?"

"Better fighter, but not the brightest. Yet, that's all goanna change soon. Well, you being the better fighter anyway."

After blushing for a moment, Fasha scanned Jason with her eyes, taking notice to the dirt and soot. "I see you're training hard. That's good, but you still have a long way to go. Also, I'm gonna keep climbing and be the number one warrior in the world. So, even if you keep climbing and getting stronger, if I keep getting stronger too, you'll never surpass me since I'm already ahead of you now!" she said with a loud laugh.

 _And she calls me the child. "_ Sure," Jason said in a sarcastic tone. "Anyway, what are you doing here?"

"I came to make sure you didn't croak. I get worried leaving lil ol' you all be yourself." she teased.

Jason's face became a cherry. "Ha, Ha. Very funny. Laugh while you can, 'cuz soon I'll master the missile technique and be unstoppable." he said with confidence.

Fasha laughed uncontrollably again, deepening the red on Jason's face. "What do you keep laughing for!?" he exploded.

"You think that mastering that little technique will save your naïve ass? C'mon even you have to admit that's laughable."

Jason growled and swiped his blade off the ground. He pointed it at Fasha and gave her a menacing glare. "If you're so sure then let's test it! We'll see who laughs last!"

Fasha was taken aback for a moment, but then smiled. "Look at you, looking like a knight and all! You've some nerve challenging me to a fight JayJay. Unfortunately, I only came to make sure that you were okay. I have to go handle some things with a friend. After I say hi to Ms. Shannon real fast."

Jason went silent and averted his eyes. Fasha noticed the expression on his face change almost entirely. It couldn't be more obvious he was overcome with disappointment. "Why the long face?" Fasha asked.

Jason gritted his teeth. "You've been hanging out with this friend more and more lately. Not to mention you're hardly ever around anymore, leading the Skewer Ops and all."

Fasha approached him and slowly leaned in closer to his face. His face lit up like a Christmas tree and their eyes were fixated on each other for a moment. She then flicked him on his forehead and snickered. "Don't be stupid JayJay. I'm just busy with things outside the village for now. But things will go back to normal soon, I promise." she winked.

Jason sighed internally, but he knew she meant well. He gave her a soft smile with a nod. "Better not forget about me during your misadventures around Gennomy."

"How could I forget the one I care about the most? Even if he's a naïve, clumsy, bumbling fool." 

"There you go being a smart ass again," Jason growled back.

Fasha laughed and turned her back to him. She headed toward the hills before stopping. Jason was confused as to what caused her to stop. "You know Jason, I noticed how much stronger you've gotten. Physically and mentally. Compared to a few years ago, you've improved more than anyone I've fought with or against. If there's one guy that would be fit in protecting and changing our village, it's definitely you. You'd make a fine addition to our squad."

Jason beamed, excited enough to jump for joy, but found Fasha's random compliment and sweet words a tad bit off-putting. Even when she wasn't teasing him and gave actual praise, it would never be so random and abrupt. Not to mention her speaking with her back still turned.

"And yet.." she said getting choked up and shaking. "Yet you still couldn't save me." Jason saw the tears falling from her face and his eyes widened.

The bright green scenery suddenly became a land covered in dancing orange flames. The dust of burning wood flickered all around him. The once crystal blue sky was now dark and covered in dense steel clouds. He looked over the hills and saw the skyline of the village in a similar state of the very forest his was in. Jason was on his knees, surrounded by destroyed and or burning trees on the ground. Jason was covered in sweat, barely able to breathe in the dense, hot, smoky air. _What is this? How did this happen? Who did all this?_ All these questions spun in his head. Jason looked down on his hands and saw them covered in thick, red blood. His heart rate escalated readily and he shook like a wet kitten. Slowly, a pool of blood covered the ground and filled his vision. He reluctantly looked up to see something so horrifying, he couldn't even scream. He saw a body in the middle of the blood pool, and once making it out, the once pleasant feeling became a living hell.

Jason opened his eyes and screamed, waking up in a cold sweat. Once again, his environment changed. This time he was in a dungeon, chained up to a wall and submerged in nearly total darkness, with the only light coming from the night sky that was visible through the small window to the side of him. He sighed, thankful that the nightmare ended. Yet, he felt he had a new nightmare to conquer: reality (or to be more specific: the Gorgons).

The darkness was interrupted, as Jason could see a small flame in the distance, getting closer to him. "Who's there!?" he yelled. The light drew closer and the flame grew larger. Much to Jason's dismay, the person revealed from the flame's illuminating light so happened to be the person responsible for his capture. It was Aurora, boasting a goofy smile and all.

"Howdy! How do you like it here? Comfy?" she giggled.

Jason's fury was so high he couldn't even form words. His war declaration could barely pass as gibberish.

"Good talk." Aurora mocked.

"You! Wha-What the hell do you want!?" he asked with his face bright red.

"Turn down the red, Rudolph. I just wanna talk."

"Talk? Oh please. We are beyond talking at this point! If it weren't for these magic chains, you'd be mincemeat, witch!"

Aurora giggled. "Nice threat, but let's test that." she said. Aurora's flame turned a bright blue and she fired it at one of the steel chains, melting it and severing the bond. She fired another at the other chain, freeing Jason. Once the chains were severed, Jason felt his cuffs get lighter and looser, and was able to remove them with ease.

"What? Aren't you gonna turn me into mincemeat?"

He looked at Aurora with a profound shock, yet his freedom still wasn't enough for him to grant her forgiveness.

"Let me guess. You're freeing me so I can quench your thirst for a fight, right?"

"Tempting, but you're clearly a bad listener. I said I want to talk, not to fight. Oh, also..." She opened her hand, and Jason's blade and sheathe appeared. Jason had just realized his weapon wasn't on his person.

"If you want this weapon back, you'll have to sit and talk to me."

Jason scoffed, but grinned. "Even with your teleportation, I'm still faster than you, combat wise. What's to stop me from pummeling you, taking it, and getting out of here?"

"You saw what I did to those magic binding chains right?" Aurora cast the blue flame in her opposite hand. "Melting this dagger should b-

"Stop don't!" Jason panicked.

Aurora raised an eyebrow, confirming to her that bronze weapon was more than just a weapon to him. "Alright, now that the conditions are understood, sit, and let's talk." she said as she sat on the ground.

Jason growled in frustration once again and slammed his fist into the wall behind him, leaving a small crack. He reluctantly cooperated and sat down. "Fine, you win. What do you want to talk about, princess?"

"Firstly, never call me 'princess' again. I hate it. That's the fifth time you've called me that and you won't get a sixth! Got it?"

"You were counting? Yeah, yeah whatever." Jason replied.

"Good. Now, Jason Furasaku. Why did you try to steal the stone?"

Jason looked away from Aurora and off to the side. "What's it to you?"

"I may not like the title of 'princess', but this kingdom is my home. I couldn't have you to steal it to destroy the city or anything like that."

"What!? I wouldn't do that! I don't want to hurt the innocent!" Jason freaked.

"I know." Aurora grinned. "You protected those people from those giants after all. So, I kinda have an idea of why you'd want something so powerful." Her smile vanished. "The Furasaku clan was your family. And you want them back."

There was a deafening silence. Jason's head began to spin. He clenched his fists and looked into the corner of the room. Trying to break the silence, he began to speak, but the mere thought of it pushed the words back down his throat. Barely able to calm down, he finally spoke. "So, you heard huh? About my clan?"

She did more than just hear about it, but she wanted to keep all of her knowledge under wraps. Who knew how he'd react to her role in it. "Heard about it? It's one of the greatest mysteries of the past few years. Your clan was powerful enough to challenge the Gorgon empire way back when. Even though times changed, it's still inconceivable they were all wiped in a single ni-

Aurora stopped once she noticed the tears dropping from Jason's tight face. _Shit, me and my big mouth. This is what I wanted to avoid._

Jason swiftly wiped them from his face and tried to regain his composure. "We weren't the savages people thought us to be." he struggled to say.

Aurora frowned. "Sorry...I didn't mean to-

Jason swiftly shook his head. "Don't apologize. It's just not a lot of people know that our clan deviated from the life of the warrior in the past century. Or, at least that's what I was taught and what I saw. But, to answer your question, I am. I seek the power of the Divine Sorcerer's Stones to resurrect the dead."

Aurora placed the dagger to her side. "You wanna see something cool?"

Jason was thrown off by the abrupt question and tilted his head in confusion. Aurora then summoned the stone Jason attempted to steal. Jason's eyes lit up upon seeing it. Its evergreen glow reminded him of the hill he once trained on right outside his village.

"You're not...giving this to me are you?" Jason asked.

"Woaaah! Slow down there! I can't just give it to you. Besides, I haven't even shown you what it can do."

Aurora released her flame and placed her free hand on the ground. She lifted it and created a small rock formation, similar to a scale model of a mountain. "You see this? It's made of the rock and gravel of your dungeon floor. But when I use a small amount of the stone's magic." She hovered the stone over it, and it began glowing brighter. Green sparks emitted from it and branched out onto the rock formation. It began slowly changing in form into a solid gold chalice. Jason's eyes were about to pop out of his head. He was at a loss for words. Jason reached out to pick up the chalice, feeling its smooth texture and scratching against its surface. There was no marking indicating it was painted. The chalice was entirely pure.

"This is incredible! The stone can do that? What else is it capable of?" Jason asked eagerly.

"Nothing. This is all it can do." Aurora said with a smile.

Jason was taken aback. "Eh? All it can do is make golden cups!?

Aurora used the stone again and the chalice crumbled (much like Jason's expectations) turning back into rock and gravel. "This Divine Sorcerer's stone, much like the others, has one purpose. This is the Mutate Stone. It can turn any substance into something else, regardless of its properties or its physical state. That's it."

"Well that's disappointing... the thing seems very limited despite being called 'divine'."

"Actually, the Divine Sorcerer's Stone contains a limitless supply of magical power, unlike living magic users. Yet much like magic inside people, it's tailored to a specific use or type, hence why the Mutate Stone is called what it is. Even though I created just that small cup, this stone was used to build the entire kingdom out of war spoils, all in a matter of minutes! Pretty neat eh?" Aurora smiled.

"That's cool and all, but are there others? Where are they located? And is there one that can bring people back to life?"

"You're one curious little demon ya know? I'm not entirely sure what other stones are out there. They're a complete mystery to me, well, for the most part. They've only been around for about a few hundred years. Younger than my mothe...well, younger than Queen Euryale at least."

Jason closed his eyes, trying to process everything Aurora told and showed him concerning the stone. "Well, now that I know this, I suppose I have no reason to seek out this stone. And you knowing nothing about any others, you can't help me in my search either." Jason got on his feet and dusted himself off. "I'll take my blade now and be on my way. I can't dawdle in this dungeon any longer. Though, before I go, why tell me this in the first place? Why get me locked up here just to talk?"

 _There he goes, questioning me again. Great._ "Like I said, you protecting those people when the giants attacked. That's not something any ordinary thief would do. Not to mention you didn't kill any of our guards, even though you're more than capable. So, like you, I was curious as to your reason. So, I lied to have Euryale lock you up by yourself. She's probably investigating those two giants now and probably figured me out, but oh well." she answered, shrugging her shoulders.

Jason squinted his eyes, being very skeptical of her answer and her actions. He found Aurora very strange, yet very familiar. The flexing of physical power, ditsy attitude, and her compassionate side all reminded him of Fasha. She wasn't the royal kiss-ass that Jason initially took her for. Yet, Fasha had a cause for it all. Aurora's was still very unclear to him. "You're letting me go? You won't stop me?"

"Nope. If you want to seek out the other stones, go for it, BUT under one condition."

"Which is?"

Aurora deported the stone and jumped to her feet as well. She grabbed his weapon, while in its sheath, and pointed it to him. "You have to take me with you!"

"Oh right, right sur- wait. WHAT?" Jason yelled.

"I have my own reasons for looking for the stones. Plus, it beats living in this prison of a castle. I wanna go out and see the world! A grand adventure of sorts. I bet there will be all types of powerful monsters and warriors along the way too! All seeking out the stones ugh! Just thinking about it has me shaking!" _Plus...helping you bring them back is the least I can do. Bringing her back._

Jason couldn't hide the dumbfounded cringe on his face. There was no way he could fathom this strange witch he met, in spite of the familiarity to Fasha. Yet, despite his head just filling with more questions, he didn't want to stall any longer. He sighed and said, "You know what? Fine. But we must go now. Just hand me my blade and we can be on our way."

Aurora handed him his blade and threw her arms up in excitement, shouting in joy. However, Jason struck her in her stomach with all his strength. She hunched over and fell to her knees, unable to breath. She held on tightly to her stinging abdomen before falling over and losing consciousness. He looked down at her unconscious body and sighed. "Now we're even." he uttered with pain in his voice. Leading up to that day, Jason held a disdain for partners, afraid they'll suffer a similar fate to anyone close to him. "Until next time, Aurora." 


	7. Euryale's Venom

On the other side of the castle, still underground, Euryale was face to face with the giant twins, Kaji and Raji. The two giants were inside of a much larger dungeon room and bounded by several glowing chains, witch shackles around their arms, legs, and neck. The two giants were battered and covered with stab wounds that would barely heal. They sweated and shook before the Scorpion Queen, who had a bloody sword in her left hand. She parted her hair to the side and sighed, growing impatient of the back and forth with them that had lasted thirty minutes.

"I'll ask one more time. Are you working for her or not?"

Kaji and Raji looked at each other before looking back at Euryale. "We ain't sayin nuthin!" Kaji said with a painfilled voice.

"Yeah! Nuthin to you!" Raji added on.

The giants felt their strength slowly fading. Their aura wasn't healing their wounds, and their bodies became numb.

"At this rate, you'll die. However", Euryale said." Euryale pulled out a syringe with a glowing blue liquid inside of it. "With this you can kiss all of that internal pain and misery goodbye. And if you confess, I may be willing to have you two work for me instead. All things considered, you've no reason to refuse and stay tight-lipped."

Again, the two brothers looked at each other. "Maybe we should?" Raji said.

"Bro it's clearly a trap. Don't trust that witch. That crap juss a bluff. Our magic should heal us any minute." Kaji said.

"It's not a bluff. You will die." Euryale said bluntly.

"You're right bro." Raji said before turning back to the witch. "We not fallin for your spell! We gonna hit the big time!"

"How?" Euryale replied.

"Well we....we." Raji slowed down, completely immersed in a thick coating of sweat. His insides were seemingly jelly and the once cool atmosphere now felt like a convection oven. Same went for his twin brother, who could barely keep his eyes open. "Hey bro? It a lil toasty in here?"

"It's all a trick you dumb...dumb...nya...bla." Kaji barely was able to form words anymore.

"You know it could be a lot cooler. And those bleeding wounds can be gone too with a little confession." Euryale tried to persuade them.

The two brothers felt as if their insides were being eaten. Their skin turned green and their thick muscles decreased in mass.

"Hey...we should visit moms. I miss her." Raji said with his eyes shut and his voice teetering.

"Mama is dead you-ya- damn moron." Kaji replied.

"Fret not, I can help you with that too." Euryale interrupted.

With a swift swipe of her tail she cleanly removed the giants heads from their necks, splattering their blood all over the dungeon wall. She turned around to see her goblin servant shaking in his boots.

"Mi'lady. Perhaps it would be wise to not poison the ones you're interrogating to the point where they can't speak." he advised.

"Perhaps I was too rough with them. You wanna ask them yourself what they thought of my methods, Norman?"

"No ma'am that's quite alright!" Norman shrieked.

"Good. Now clean up this filth."

Suddenly, Orpheus came running down the hall in a panic. He stopped to catch his breath once he reached the queen. "Queen Euryale! The demon fugitive has escaped from his dungeon! And Princess Aurora has been discovered in there!"

"That's preposterous! Of all the things to happen today!" Euryale groaned.

***********

Aurora remained unconscious, with her mind plagued about what happened with Jason. She thought her getting knocked out served her right with that little stunt she pulled. Having her hands covered in the Skewer Ops' blood didn't help. She loathed that part of her life and everything that preceded it. Those lives were few of many she took, one of many missions she took for her mother. Never a thank you nor words of encouragement. It was all expectation. Even at the young age of five, she felt she had no voice, no freedom, no life outside of being a weapon. Even with how powerful she was, how skilled she's gotten in combat, it never meant a thing to her mother if it didn't benefit her.

Just as these thoughts plagued her mind, Aurora heard faint talking in the background, pierced by Euryale's shouting. At one point she got so loud, Aurora jumped up in a cold sweat. She saw her mother standing over her and giving a most unsatisfying frown as she crossed her arms. Aurora jumped quickly to her feet. She quickly glanced around the room and realized they were in the main ballroom, which was brightly lit, extremely vast and elegantly decorated. Several tables to the side, white columns around the space, a giant glass chandelier in the center of the ceiling, and the marble floor with the usual giant scorpion insignia in the center. The room screamed 'Euryale' in Aurora's eyes.

"Good...morning?" Aurora said nervously.

"Aurora, my darling daughter." Euryale said calmly.

Aurora's eyes lowered to the ground. She knew what was coming.

 _"_ Our little demon prisoner, the one you were in charge of capturing has apparently escaped. And found in place of his dungeon was you, out cold. And the magic-infused chains used to keep him captive has apparently been melted. Is there any explanation you can give that won't vex me even further?"

Aurora paused for a moment, considering her options. "You see, what had happened wa-

Euryale smacked her to the ground with her scorpion tail without warning. "This nonsensical behavior of yours is unacceptable!"

Aurora wiped the blood from her mouth and glared up at the Queen with her lip still stinging. "You must get off on it huh?" Aurora growled.

"You think I like punishing you? You think I want to be here, right now, having a conversation about this shit again? We just went over this earlier! But clearly, you haven't learned your lesson." Euryale closed her fist, lighting up her blue-stoned ring. Much like before, Aurora's tattoo lit a bright blue and coiled around her body. Again, her flesh contracted and tore apart and her skin burned, or at least, that's what Aurora felt as she screamed.

Meanwhile, Euryale's royal guard ran all about the castle. They filled the halls and every major room, all armed with a handheld weapon. In one hall in particular, the guards covered every square inch, looking for the fugitive. Much to their chagrin, the demon they searched so heavily for was right above them, crawling in the air vents. Uncomfortable from the tight space and irritated by the cold air and dust, he crawled on and looked for an escape. Jason found it a lot easier to escape the castle when it wasn't this packed. His earlier stunt, along with his escape created a much harder maze to solve. One slip up and he'd be done. He slowly crawled until he heard a loud pitched scream.

"The hell is that!?" he whispered to himself as he crawled forward.

Jason reached another vent and saw the Queen standing above a suffering Aurora. He squinted his eyes and noticed the glowing blue markings around her body, along with Euryale's ring.

"What the?" Jason asked himself.

Euryale placed her heel on Aurora's head and pressed down. "This seem familiar? Oh yeah, that's right, we did this just two hours ago! How many times are you gonna put your own personal agenda over ** _my_** orders?"

As Aurora's insides were being ripped apart, everything came to a head. Everything she ever did for Euryale, all as she asked. All just to please her. That was never going to happen. Then, her mind filled with her earlier conversation with Orpheus, and his talks of her leaving the kingdom. The thoughts of being free. No longer having to make sure she was satisfied. Then, she remembered something important. She remembered the face of her friend from many years ago. One which she grew up with, and one that saved her from spending the rest of her days as a mindless killing machine. One that she wished, from the bottom of her heart, that she could see one last time. Share one last laugh, or one last sparring session. Her dearest demon friend, Alicia. That girl would often tell Aurora these very important words: _Your fate is what you make of it. If your heart yearns for something, the only thing stopping you is you._ As if a flame went ablaze over a pit of coal, Aurora put her hands under her and began to push up.

She caught Euryale by surprise. The Queen removed her heel and stepped back. "You can still move despite all that pain? A glutton." Euryale closed her fist tighter and the stone glowed brighter. Aurora's pain grew worse and she staggered. It felt as if gravity was crushing her against the ground. No matter how hard she pushed up, she couldn't budge. She screamed as she struggled, and Jason watched it all from afar.

Suddenly, the center of Aurora's chest began to glow. Euryale noticed and staggered, realizing the cause of it. Aurora's nose leaked of blood, and her own aura began to swell around her. The ground beneath her shook. Purple streaks of lightning emitted from her hands and crumbled the marble floor. The streaks stretched out towards Euryale and she jumped back, releasing her grip and breaking the spell.

Aurora plopped on the ground and panted, with tears blurring her vision. She got to her feet and glared at Euryale with the eyes of a demon.

Euryale regained her composure and looked at her marble floor in disgust. Euryale couldn't help but be lost at Aurora's defiance. Aurora was her child, her creation, her property. In her eyes, all children are meant to fulfill the roles of their parents. Their wills should only be that of the parent, the one who put them into the world and sacrificed for them. This confusion only boiled the kettle to a higher degree, as did Aurora's stand.

Aurora chuckled, slowly regaining her composure. "I can't believe I wanted to make you happy once."

"What was that child?"

"She was right. I deserve way better than you. A monster incapable of love!"

Euryale howled of laughter. "You call me a monster? Oh yes, you who have demon blood, a strong track record of murder, and _that_ inside you call me a monster. Quite amusing daughter. As if you'd know anything about love."

Aurora's throat closed up and her body shivered, more than it ever did. She felt as if she were going to explode. Her head thumped and her veins appeared on her red skin. "I'm not your daughter! And I know plenty. I had someone who loved me. Someone who taught me everything. Taught me compassion, self-respect, independence, and even just enjoyment. _Things I should've gotten from you!_ " Aurora's eyes leaked, and she found it hard to speak.

Aurora's tears didn't faze Euryale one bit. She just stood there with her arms crossed and a grimace. "Someone loved you hm? I wonder, where is this person now if you seek that so much."

Aurora's eyes widened and her heart wrenched. She ground her teeth, baring her fangs, and her demon aura swelled around her body.

"See? These things she taught you were clearly fallacy. After all, look where it got he-

Aurora dashed and struck Euryale square in her face. Euryale barely budged, shrugging off the punch with minimal effort. Aurora staggered before being struck in her abdomen by Euryale before she could react. It was as if she didn't even move. Jason was also shaken by the queen's strength. Aurora tumbled backward and coughed up a storm.

"Not only do you interrupt me, but you dare put your grimy little hands on me? You haven't earned the right." Euryale threw off her red robe. Shimmering gold armor covered her chest and shoulders, with set shoulder armor branching out with spikes. She opened her left hand and streams of water swirled around it until it formed a sword. "Since your defiance knows no bounds, I'll punish you in the same way you seek pleasure. Maybe that way you'll see to give up these childish dreams and fulfill your destiny."

Aurora once again jumped up to her feet. She panted and grabbed her stinging abdomen. Normally Aurora would be pumped about the idea of fighting a demi-god, but not this time. Fun was out of the question; she just wanted her dead. Nothing would make her happier than pummeling the very cause of her life-long suffering. All these years she'd been too inexperienced, too weak, or would never get far enough. With how she felt she was now, she had to at least try. She felt if she failed at amending the Furasaku's fate, getting rid of the root cause could give her some sense of solace. However, there was only one way to escape with little repercussions: destroying that ring. Aurora watched Euryale approach her like a serial killer approaching their victim.

Aurora vanished and reappeared directly above her. She swiftly created a witch-blade clashed blades with Euryale. Aurora pressured her, but was unable to break her defense. Euryale effortlessly cast aside Aurora's attacks, all with a smug grin on her face. Euryale turned the tables when she began attacking with her tail, repeatedly jabbing at Aurora.

Quickly and unexpectedly, Aurora was on the run, dodging her mother's sword as well as her tail. Aurora teleported away to get some ground, only for Euryale to swiftly dash across the room and get in her face once again. She sliced her stomach and kicked her into a nearby pillar, crumbling it in the process. As she did, the syringe with the blue liquid inside fell out of Euryale's pocket and onto the ground. Jason took notice to this, pondering what it was and why Euryale had it.

"You're so predictable Aurora! When are you gonna stop relying on that displacement gimmick of yours? Are you so arrogant to believe I have no way to counter it?" 

Aurora's torso bled from the cut, but immediately healed and closed. Aurora gripped her side and climbed to her feet once again. She panted from exhaustion as she stared down her opponent. Her body was ringing in pain and soreness, but giving up was far from her next move. Fighting close quarters was clearly a no-go. Yet, Aurora had to get close enough to destroy that ring. With little time to think, Aurora hatched a quick plan and smiled. "Counter this," she said confidently.

Aurora vanished again, this time rapidly and repeatedly around the ballroom. It was as if she was a shutter camera, leaving afterimages all over the space. Jason, while watching, recognized a particular pattern and the fashion she was choosing to attack. "Wait, that's how I fought her in the beginning. While it technically isn't speed, she still hopes to throw her off like that?" Jason thought to himself.

Euryale stood still in the center of the ballroom. She stayed on her guard, following Aurora as best she could with her eyes. Aurora was clever, she thought, but she was still a novice compared to a Queen. In a whisper of wind, Euryale dashed forward and stabbed an image of Aurora with her sword. With that, the rapid displacement ceased. However, with a flash of blue light, the image of Aurora along with most of Euryale's became submerged in a thick, spiky ice. Euryale was frozen still but heated with anger. The images of aurora reappeared, this time in a circle around her. Blasts of fire, water, wind, earth, and lighting were all fired at Euryale, who was defenseless and unable to evade. On impact, there was an explosion that could be felt throughout the entire castle. The ballroom floor cracked and shook, along with the entire room itself.

Jason tried his best to keep himself from falling out of the vent due to the commotion. He found himself impressed once the dust began to settle. She actually managed to trick her and form a calculated counter-attack to Euryale's speed. It was clearer than more than ever before that Aurora was no ordinary princess, or an ordinary witch. He found Aurora's will commendable, but despite the theatrics, Jason had his own escape to plan. He planned to continue through the vents and hopefully find a way out. That was until Aurora's words rung in his head like a siren. 'Take me with you.' 'it's not what you are or the type of magic you have that determines your fate. It's what you do with it.' They were gnawing away at him, causing hesitance. Jason shook his head, dead set on forgetting it all and advancing forward.

Aurora was standing (barely), panting and shaking immensely. Her chest had a glowing bright blue spot that grew in size. She grabbed her chest and her breathing increased. Aurora started coughing and felt as if the room was spinning. It felt as if she was intoxicated, but without ever consuming alcohol. Something was wrong, but despite that, Aurora boasted a grin and a small chuckle.

The dust cleared, and the queen was still standing. Part of her armor was destroyed and her battle skirt singed. Euryale was covered in scuffs and burn marks, but her wounds vanished almost instantly. Though the physical damage wasn't major, Euryale was not pleased in the slightest.

"Impressive. I didn't give you enough credit before. That was definitely the work of a trained warrior. Another thing you should thank me for." Euryale started softly. "However, how much longer can you keep this up?"

Aurora saw her ring still intact. Aurora jumped back on her guard, but her knees buckled beneath her. Euryale dashed right back in while Aurora staggered. This time, her attacks where a lot faster and more relentless. The young witch was on the run once again. Aurora slowed down. She began to look sloppy. Aurora was cut all over her body by Euryale's sword, and smacked around by her tail. Euryale made Aurora look exactly as she saw her: like a child. Aurora's own witch blade dissipated when she hit the floor like a rag-doll. Her once fiery aura was extinguished. Her healing was delayed significantly. Aurora's face appeared to be red, and she seemed to be hyperventilating. Jason couldn't make heads or tails of what was happening, but, he himself began to heat up.

Euryale towered over her daughter, who was struggling to get back up. "Now do you see? Even with that clever attack, it was all a fruitless effort. Cut the tantrum and go back to your room. Like a good princess. And cut all of this indulgence and compassion nonsense. A Gorgon doesn't need such things."

Aurora threw up her left hand and blasted Euryale with a cannon of fire. The blast stretched all the way to the other side of the large room, decimating the round beneath even further. Once the flames ceased, Aurora rested for a moment and coughed relentlessly again. The smoke and debris gradually cleared, but Aurora was certain she got a direct hit, despite not having the stamina to create blue flames. She panted but smiled. This calm would be quickly interrupted by the storm. A shadow cast over her body. Aurora shook, now chilled to the bone. She swiftly turned around to see a scorpion tail fly in and strike her in the face again. She tumbled and crashed into another pillar. Aurora was black red and blue, and seemingly out of commission.

Jason's aura flared. He couldn't stand the way Euryale treated her. From the poison down to the slave talk, it all caused a boil within him. Despite that, Jason knew that he'd fare no better against her. Euryale was barely trying, and still destroyed someone he already had trouble fighting before. The Pearl Kingdom couldn't have had a more ferocious and feared leader.

Euryale marched up to the battered witch, with her combat dress mainly singed. It vexed her greatly, but she stood proudly over her rebellious daughter. "This fight was over before it began. To think I raised you to be a warrior. If I still had the resources I'd invest in a new tool, but you're far too talented to cast aside. Lucky you."

Aurora, despite having no feeling in her body, and seemingly no strength, tried her hardest to push herself off the ground. She grunted as loud as she could, and her chest was glowing a bright blue again. Euryale gawked and growled at the sight, becoming more and more irritated. Aurora finally found herself back on her feet once again, shaky knees and all. Much like her chatty mother, Aurora broke her silence.

With a painfilled voice, Aurora said, "This overwhelming pain. This numbness. This heat and pressure. The blood coming from my wounds. The vibrations in my bones. The magic barely fueling my body. The pounding in my head and in my chest. All of this shit...is the shit I live for. Nothing like a battle like this can make me any happier."

"Just like you to say something like that."

Aurora panted more, trying to make the best of her short breath. "And despite me...wanting more than a trill like this, a thrill of overcoming this. It's all meaningless to me...if it's all for you. This pain is much more painful when I know it's for you. I never find pleasure in living, fighting and dying for a bitch like you."

Euryale growled and abruptly punched Aurora in her face. The crunching of Aurora's teeth and the tearing of her skin rang on Euryale's hand before her daughter rolled to the ground again. Euryale shook the blood off her ring hand and began knocking the dust off her body. "It's drivel like that why I despise you so much. You go on and on trying to find a great fight, going as far as to endanger your own life. Yet it's all for what? Pleasure. Enjoyment. Fulfillment. You've nothing meaningful to fight for if you only fight for yourself."

"You're one to talk! You're a Queen and a mother yet you only live for yourself! Use people for yourself!"

"Enough of your pathetic whining!"

Suddenly, Aurora's insides turned and she vomited blood violently. Aurora noticed parts of her skin turning purple, and her scars darkening. Her entire body jerked back and forth as if she was having a seizer, and Jason watched in absolute horror.

Jason eventually figured it out upon seeing her skin. Euryale must've poisoned her, as he did him in their first encounter. It had to been when Euryale cut Aurora with her sword the first time. The blade was lased in poison, and it slowly took over the more Aurora used magic. The jerking stopped and her body laid still. Jason saw, still idle, but also still enraged. The still body flashed a certain unpleasant image in his head. His nails grew along with his fangs. Every inch of his will was subdued to hold himself back, but he could watch no longer.

Euryale shook her head. "Finally, the poison did its work. Thank me for designing you with such gifts that you could survive my venom for that long. But you're done." She'd had enough of Aurora's fit, and was now ready to handle actual important things in her life. Aurora rolled over, with a lump on her right eye and most of her cheek scraped and bloody. Euryale stabbed her sword into the ground and stood directly over the defeated witch.

In that moment, an opportunity arose, and Aurora refused to miss it. With the little strength she had, she prepared one last magical attack. A small bead of water, condensed to the size of a tear. Euryale saw her last-ditch effort, and couldn't help but to laugh in her face. "You're wasting your time child! You haven't any strength to continue fighting. Quit the rebellion and start being the obedient tool you were created to be!"

The water droplet fired like a bullet, right through Euryale's ring. The tiny diamond shattered, leaving behind a cloud of sparkly dust in the air, while the ring itself crumbled away like gravel. Euryale staggered, and for once, was at a loss for words. 


	8. Escape

Aurora sighed of relief. She managed to find the strength to sit up and take in the ridiculous look on Euryale's face. Seeing her shocked, disturbed, and distraught was fueling Aurora's amusement. She cackled, despite the pain throughout her body still worsening. It was ecstasy to the girl, seeing that face for the first time in her life.

"You think this is funny? Do you realize what you've done?" Euryale growled. Like a flip of a switch, her frustration and shock was exchanged with a calm, sadistic smile. Euryale revealed the back of her hand to Aurora, and the scorpion tattoo slowly revealed onto it. Aurora's laughter was sucked right out of her.

"No..." Aurora muttered.

"Did you really think the ring was the source? If you'd been more observant and level-headed, you could've deduced it years ago. Oh well, lesson learned right?" Euryale closed her hand, activating the curse once again.

During Aurora's pain-filled wailing, more and more of her skin turned purple. Aurora could no longer move or feel a muscle in her body. She lied in the rubble of the fallen pillar, taking short breaths. Aurora, with shady vision, noticed Euryale gripping her hand she uses to activate her curse. She appeared to be in some mild pain.

All the same, Euryale marched up to her and glared down at her. This glare wasn't just one of hate, but one of disappointment. All her life, Euryale groomed her to be the eventual perfect successor and the perfect weapon. Aurora's defiance seeped in a glimmer of failure on Euryale's mind, and another failure is the last thing she wanted to dread. To make it worse, the image of her red-haired daughter was a mirror image of her young self.

_Time and time again you manage to disappoint me! Your negligence to detail and your feeble power depth is absolutely putrid. When are you going to establish your place in this empire? When are you going to step up and do what you were brought into this world to do!? When are you going to be more like your sister!?_

These words of her own mother gnawed away at Euryale's soul like a dog chewing on a bone. The thought of it brought her blood beyond her boiling point. "Never thought I'd see my own flesh and blood in such a disgraceful state. It's absolutely unacceptable!" she said, choking on her words.

Suddenly, the vents and ceiling corner collapsed. Euryale snapped out of her dreadful trance and turned swiftly to see what's up, only to see a dark figure dashing towards her like a bullet. Euryale evaded, leaving whatever jumped out at her by her daughter's side. The dust subsided, and Euryale was shocked to see the demon escapee before her, with his fists balled and his red eyes glowing.

"Y-you? You're still here?" Euryale asked in shock.

Jason's body pulsated, his heart pounding, and his skin emitting steam. His breathing grew heavier and his body was burning. He clenched his fists to the point of piercing his skin. Euryale knew the symptoms oh too well. She drew her blade and stood on her guard.

Jason tried to clear his head as best he could. Jason closed his eyes and took deep breaths _. Inhale and exhale_. _Inhale and exhale Cool down Jason. You know a level head always outweighs physical power._ The steam subsided and his body cooled down after a moment. Euryale took notice to his demeanor and lowered her guard.

"Indulge me Furasaku. You had an opportunity to escape and didn't. Why?"

Jason paused for a moment before answering her. "Don't get me wrong, I want nothing more to be long gone and far away from you and your entourage. But let's just say I don't agree with the way you run your family. Is this the way all you royal Gorgons work!?"

Euryale chuckled. "Look at you! A demon who thinks he has some type of moral high ground! How absolutely revolting." Euryale marched toward him with her blade.

"What's revolting is how you look down on everyone. How you look down on Aurora and even your own people. You're no Queen. You're no mother either."

Euryale stopped and squeezed the handle of her blade. Her snarky grin was gone, and Jason's words cut right through her, like a hot knife through butter. There was no longer a point in locking him up again. His mere existence was just another reminder of her blunders. "A demon, a fugitive, and an orphan. To be so many things at once must be tiring. Let me put you to rest."

Jason gritted his teeth, backed in a corner. He didn't know what he got himself into. Going into the day with the intention to steal a Divine stone, he never wanted to be in a death match with a demi-god. But, for everything he desired, he knew through her was his only out.

Jason quickly tried to formulate a plan with what little time he had. He quickly surveyed the room with his eyes, looking for anything of use. He noticed in the distance a syringe with a blue liquid in it. He remembered it falling out of Euryale's pocket when she fought Aurora. With that knowledge, Jason's next move was set. Anything short of success meant death, so only a single shot. He just hoped his hunch about the syringe was right. So, he smirked. "Sorry, but I've too much energy to rest."

Euryale raised an eyebrow.

Jason zipped around the ballroom as fast as he could, creating gusts of wind and trying to disorient Euryale. She wasn't amused, knowing Aurora tried something similar. As Euryale followed him with her eyes, she noticed Jason pulling something out of his pocket. Euryale maintained her elegant stance, prepared for anything Jason could throw. What he ended up throwing was small black diamonds that burst into a dense black smoke on impact with the ground. The smoke covered the entire ballroom. Euryale was impressed enough to crack a smile. He further disguised his attack, making him appear competent for the first time in her eyes.

She swiped her sword and cleared the smoke in a powerful gust of wind. Euryale's eyes almost jumped out of her head as she saw a blackthorn flying towards her at a missile's speed. With her free hand, she caught the thorn out of the air.

Next thing Euryale knew, Jason's foot slammed into Euryale's face. Taking her eye off Jason proved to be a fatal mistake. The force of the kick sent the queen tumbling, and her crown flying off her redhead. Euryale staggered, gripping her aching jaw. Seeing her royal blood on her hands filled her with a trembling rage that was given form in her explosive aura.

The weight of her aura caused Jason himself to stagger. He felt as if gravity was yanking his body towards the ground. He knew she was powerful, but this was unlike anything he had ever witnessed up to this point. Debris and crushed marble flew around the room as if it were a hurricane. It took everything Jason had just to stay upright. His plan worked, but he was distraught on how pissed she was.

"You dare draw blood from a Demi-God?! Dare draw blood from a _queen_? I was gonna have some fun with you first, but now I'm going to give you an agonizing death! Prepare to join the rest of your pathetic clan in hell!" Euryale shouted.

Jason was taken aback by Euryale's final comment. The one who ended the life of his clan, his family was still a mystery to him. He stood up straight and looked her in the eye. "Was it you, Gorgon? Did you murder my clan?"

Euryale was caught by surprise. "What?"

Her aura hurricane ceased. Blood spewed from her mouth and she felt a burning feeling in her stomach. The queen slowly looked down to see a blue translucent blade impaling her from behind. The blood slowly dripped from the tip of the blade, each drop cutting away at Euryale's ego. She knew exactly who was behind the blade and she couldn't stand the mere thought.

"Sup bitch?" Aurora whispered in her ear as she forced her witch blade deeper.

Euryale dropped her sword and gripped the blade. The hot, stinging, seething pain was not enough pain to take the humiliation from her. "Y-y-ou!" she stammered with blood falling from her mouth.

"What was that shit you said earlier? About me having to stop relying on my displacement 'gimmick'? Well, look where we are now, my Queen! Kind of fitting, given this is one of the few things you ever taught me to do."

Aurora saw Euryale's tail about to strike and displaced as it jabbed at her. She reappeared to Jason's side, and watched as Euryale fell to her knees.

Euryale's blood splattered beneath her. She shivered, confused as to why Aurora's skin was clear and all of her wounds were gone. Euryale's confusion was brief, as she saw an empty syringe in her left hand. _How? How could she have even gotten that? Did I drop it!? Even so, how could she have grabbed it?_ Suddenly, that bell rang. She figured it out. Jason grabbed it when he was circling the ballroom in the smokescreen. Despite the pain and anguish, she was impressed.

Jason felt small dust particles fall and hit his head. He looked around and took in the destruction of the ballroom. The destroyed pillars, ruptured ground, and crumbling ceiling.

Aurora looked over to Jason and smiled. "I had a feeling I could trust you. So sweet for coming back for me! I'm flattered."

Jason blushed and looked away. "Don't get all excited. I only came back 'cuz I couldn't stand how she was treating you. A mother treating her daughter like a tool and a weapon? It's unforgivable!"

Aurora's heart filled with warmth, now fully convinced at the type of person Jason was. She opened her hand and summoned her broom. She hopped on and gave Jason a sincere look that said, "wanna get out of here?"

For a moment, Aurora was almost the spitting image of his childhood friend. The fuzzy feeling was mutual, and he hopped on.

Euryale was disgusted, but managed to laugh, blood spewing and all. Aurora rose an eyebrow. "Your defiance will eventually be met with regret! You've never truly been out there. You don't know the hell that awaits you, especially with your 'curse' still intact!"

Aurora gripped her broom tight. "The unknown is the fun in adventure. Besides, any hell beats the one you've raised me in."

Aurora fired a strike of lighting at the ceiling, creating a gaping hole, and for the ceiling to crumble. Pieces of debris steadily fell and the ground beneath them shook, as if they were in an earthquake. "Goodbye, Euryale." Aurora said as they flew through the opening.

Euryale's bleeding body throbbed with boiling rage, yet she smiled all the same, almost as if she were proud. She pulled out a glowing, cube-like, pink crystal from her pocket and crushed it, before being piled on by various pieces of rubble.

Jason held on for dear life as Aurora zoomed through the castle on her broom, evading various guards trying to take them down. It was like a roller-coaster made in hell. Left, right, up, down, Jason himself could hardly keep up or hold on.

"Slow down!" Jason yelled.

"Hold on! Here comes the fun part!" Aurora laughed.

"FUN!?" Jason squealed.

In a matter of seconds, they barged through one of the castle windows and high into the night sky. Aurora slowed down and they coasted over the bright-lit kingdom. Jason eventually stopped shaking like a scared kitten and took in the beautiful view below. He smiled, never having seen anything like it before. It was almost like a starlit sky projected onto the ground.

Aurora felt a bit nostalgic, with a lot of memories flooding in as she looked down at her hometown. However, most of her great memories were few and far in between the screaming and the bloodshed. She was more than ready to leave it behind.

The pair reached a mountainside, with the castle and kingdom in the distance. Aurora sat and soaked in the view as she kicked back. She was absolutely elated. "That was GREAT!" she boasted. "Did you see the look on her face when I stabbed her? Ugh! So much fun! I've been wanting to do that for years!" Aurora said as she hugged herself.

Jason crossed his arms and arose an eyebrow, still questioning all the events that transpired. "Look, prin-Aurora. I know you and your mother have a... dicey relationship. And it's not my place to pry, but don't you feel a little remorse or sadness in killing her like that?"

Aurora's high wore off and she glared at Jason. "That monster is no mother of mine. I have no love lost for that woman."

"Oh." Jason scratched his head nervously, unsure of what else to say. "At least you're free of her."

"Wrong again. Unfortunately, that attack wasn't anything near enough to kill her. Had we not bolted, we'd both be dead right now."

Aurora and Jason continued walking up the hill, looking back at the city. There was a still silence between them as they looked back at the inner kingdom, recounting a wild day. After watching the city and relaxing, Jason decided to break the silence. "You do know that you helping me and escaping with me means you've committed treason, right?"

"Guess we're both criminals then!" Aurora smiled.

Jason palmed his face. "You're not taking this seriously."

Aurora scoffed. "I so am taking this seriously! Also, you're welcome Jason for aiding you in your escape! It was my pleasure." she said with snark.

"What!? Excuse me! You should be thanking ME for giving you Euryale's antidote! You got lucky that one even exists in the first place!" Jason backfired.

"Oh!? I'm sorry...you're starting to sound like someone who wants to twiddle their thumbs back in their cell!" Aurora said before laughing.

Jason growled and rolled his eyes. He got up and stretched his arms. "Whatever. Since this place doesn't have the stone I need, I'm going to look for answers," he said as he began to walk off.

"WAIT!" Aurora yelled.

"Hm?"

"Well...remember that offer I made you? You know...the one back in the dungeon?" Aurora muttered.

Jason squinted his eyes. _Oh, Omni._

"C'mon Jason! It would help both of us if we went together. It would be so much fun! We could have adventures and seek out the stones an-"

"Ok, I don't mean to cut you off Aurora, but I'm _not_ in this for a cheap thrill. I'm in this for a purpose. A purpose I can't live without fulfilling." Jason clenched his fists tight and looked Aurora directly in the eye. "I know you've been through a lot with your mom, and I'm glad you have your freedom, but I can't help you seek the stones for fun or for monetary gain. I'd never once seen this journey as something I wanted."

Aurora's face tightened. She glanced away for a moment and grabbed her chest once again. "Jason...before you go off, can I show you something?"

Jason was curious as to her big shift in demeanor. Whatever she had to show him, it was serious. "Fine, just make it quick."

***

Back at the castle, Euryale emerged from the rubble of the desolate ballroom, with her chest wound appearing as if it never happened. Her aura was fully restored, her pride however took a massive blow. The guards tended to her briefly before seeing to the repairs of the ballroom and the castle. Euryale returned to her throne room, with her Rook, Norman, soon joining her side.

"My Queen, is it true the Princess went off with that Furasaku ruffian!?" Norman asked.

"Yes, I'm afraid so. Seems that Aurora deceived us when he locked him away. They were likely conspiring to escape together from the beginning. Why? I don't know. I don't care." Euryale as she picked up her pace through the hall.

Norman tried to keep up, stirring some possible theories in his head and eager to share. "Well, Mi'lady, you do remember her mission last year, right? And her reluctance to carry it out?"

"What about it?"

"Uhm, do you think it's possible that she and this demon could be long-time acquaintances? Thus, explaining her insubordination and her failure in set mission?" Norman suggested.

Euryale stopped, and cut her eyes at Norman. Norman shrieked and cowered at the Queen's stare. "Aurora's disobedience is not linked to that _incident!_ We still aren't even sure what the hell happened, even a year later. We're fortunate that there's only one Furasaku running around at the moment. Based on my combat with him, he's nothing to be concerned about."

"Oh...I see." Norman sweated. "Even so, given her design, it's still dangerous to let Aurora run around here freely. Especially if your sister is on the move!" he stammered.

Euryale cracked a grin and looked back at Norman. Norman's distressed face escalated to a new level. "Yo-you can't be...no. Mi'lady you can't! It's so risky! Letting Princess Aurora roam free with a devil like her on the loose?! She will be a target without a doubt!" Norman cried.

Euryale rolled her eyes as she dropped a grape in her glass of wine. "That's the idea Norman. For too long my sister has slipped through our fingertips. With Aurora roaming the lands of Gennomy, she'll likely take the bait. I know her best; she can't help herself. She'll be foaming at the mouth to retrieve it." She said before taking a sip. "And when she does, we will know, and we'll finish what we started."

"We? You mean...the Magic Council?" Norman shrieked.

"I know, I know. Aside from Cleo, I hate their asses too. So smug, self-righteous, or downright idiotic. But, they're powerful, and if they're all notified, then my plan should ride without a hitch. Not to mention I'll know where Aurora is at all times, per usual."

Norman exhaled; still immensely worried Euryale's plan will just put Aurora in danger. "Aurora isn't someone who just abides by you, as you already know. Her tendencies and impulsiveness could cause this entire operation to fail, or worse, get her killed! Is that something you want my la-"

Euryale shattered her wine glass in her hand. "You're more chatty than usual, goblin. I wonder, is losing your head worth asking so many insipid questions?"

Norman groveled and bowed repeatedly in apology. "Forgive my rudeness Mi'lady! You know best and your plan will succeed without fail!"

Euryale tried to regain her composure, settling the heat in her blood. "This should go without saying, but, not a word of this to anyone. Alert the guards who witnessed this as well. Nobody who wasn't here should know of what transpired, especially concerning Aurora's departure. Go, now!"

"At once my Queen!" Norman saluted before storming out.

Euryale tossed away the shattered glass and gripped her hand. She looked down to see the scorpion tattoo glow. "She will live. She has to fulfill her destiny." Euryale muttered to herself. An image of Aurora's face flashed through Euryale's mind. Euryale bit down on her lip, trying to ignore the thought. Even more pressing was the mere existence of Jason. She didn't expect there to be a survivor and wondered if there were more like him.

***

Back outside the kingdom, Aurora and Jason soared through the skies on her broom for about an hour, flying over the mountainous terrain and forests. Jason, despite agreeing, grew weary and impatient. What bugged him most was that the chatterbox-witch was completely silent.

"Uhm. Aurora? Where are you taking me?" Jason asked.

Aurora stared down at the terrain, looking for a particular location. _Where is it? Where is it?_ Suddenly. Something caught her eye. "Here!" Aurora screamed as she immediately descended.

Jason gripped tightly before they hovered near the ground. "Give a warning next time!" Jason yelled in frustration. Jason looked up and saw a small, gray, metallic building covered in vines and having bars on its shattered windows. There was yellow hazard tape on the door warning 'keep out'.

They both hopped off the broom and took in the eerie atmosphere. "Uhm. Aurora, what is this place?"

"Follow me," Aurora said as she headed inside of the dark, desolate place.

"Oh, I'm being ignored. Ok."

Aurora lit a flame in the palm of her hand and they walked inside the dark building. As soon as Aurora stepped foot in, various unwanted memories flooded her head. Jason's uneasiness also grew as he saw the shattered glass on the ground, grass and vines growing through the cracks, destroyed lights above, thick spiderwebs, and cracked walls. There was also a rancid aroma of old garbage that made him cringe. What was most alarming to him was the burgundy coating splattered on the walls. It looked a bit like dried blood, a familiar sight to him. It was so unsettling, so much he didn't want to walk any further.

"Aurora...this place is creeping me the fuck out. A lot can be conveyed by you just telling m-"

Jason felt a crunch underneath his foot and stopped dead in his tracks. He looked down at his right slowly and shrieked. He saw a skeleton sporting a bloody lab coat with a tiny, red scorpion stitched on it. It was, without a doubt, Euryale's crest. Jason stumbled back into Aurora. "Aurora what the hell is this place?" Jason asked frantically.

"This way," Aurora responded by heading down the hall.

Jason looked to his right and noticed Euryale's large crest painted on it as they headed down the hall. After seeing more skeletons in bloody lab coats, all with tears in them, Jason started to piece some of the puzzle together.

They reached a door with severed chains and old biohazard tape on its surface. Aurora slowly reached for the door with her free hand and opened it. Behind the door was a large laboratory, with an open, mostly shattered glass pod in the center. Various shattered computers were below it, and several more corpses were in the corner of the room. The laboratory was mostly destroyed. This room had the most dry blood in it, and it was everywhere. The floor was more shattered than the rest of the building, almost as if a bomb went off. Jason couldn't believe the sight. Aurora walked up to the shattered pod and placed her hand on part of the class that was still intact.

"Aurora, please! Why am I here?" Jason asked.

Aurora slowly turned towards Jason, with tears filling her eyes. "You remember when I said there were different Divine Stones that did different things?" Aurora muttered, getting chocked up.

Jason nodded and swallowed his spit.

Aurora extinguished her flame, causing the room to go completely dark. She reached for the center of her chest and pulled apart the skin. Jason cringed at the sound of tearing skin and flesh. "What the hell are you doing?"

Jason's breath was sucked right out of him. A bright, rainbow-ish light shined on him. Jason squinted his eyes to try and make sense of what he was looking at. Between her flesh, it appeared to be a spherical stone, emitting sparks. Boom: reality hit Jason like a truck. What he was looking at was another Divine Sorcerer's stone. He shook at the sight of that and got chocked up by the sight of Aurora's tears flowing down her face.

"Jason...I'm not a real witch," Aurora muttered. 


	9. Aurora's Purpose

**_October 31, 2000_ **

It was a fairly cold night, and Euryale's laboratory was bustling with scientists and doctors running in and out of the main room. Euryale herself stood inside, watching the operation take place. Several scientists typed away on computers all over the lab, while others kept the pod flowing with liquid. Hovering in the pod was a small, naked child, just two feet in height, with short red hair. Floating in front of the child was a glowing, rainbow-colored, spherical stone creating streaks of light in the bubbling water. It was a Divine Sorcerer's Stone. The girl was surrounded by small, clear tubes, injecting her skin in vein openings. The tubes all extended out of the pod and into a special console, pumping in boiling demon blood.

"Can't we hurry this up, people? I have to get back in time for the Council meeting and I refuse to be tardy because of your incapability of doing things in a timely manner!" Euryale growled.

"We're moving as fast as we can my queen. We're just running through all the data again to ensure the Divine Stone's magic meshes with the demonic blood. If it fails, the child's body will be ripped apart." one of the scientists said.

"And you already meshed some of my sister's blood with hers?"

"Yes, my queen. Her blood mixed transfused perfectly with yours and the demon blood." Another responded.

"Excellent. Then what are we waiting for? It's the time!" Euryale said as she walked up to the console.

The child's eyes slowly opened, despite no pulse. Euryale put her hand on the pod and smiled, filled with profound joy. Euryale manipulated the water with her mind, slowly pushing the Divine Stone towards the center of the child's chest. "Wake up. It's time to begin your tenure as the Gorgon legacy. You will be the sword I use to carve a better world. The tool used to fix what those fools have broken. The light to guide the world into a better future. My guiding light. My Aurora. _"_

"Wait! My Queen! We haven't finished running all the data! If you infuse the stone now, it could-"

"Enough! She is _my_ child, and she will live!" Euryale screamed.

The stone slowly molded into the girl's flesh, and the blue liquid in the tank came to a boil. Her veins spiked and she drew a pulse that was out of control. The scientist's computers all bugged out before sparking. The lights in the entire building blew out in a flash, and the ground itself shook like an earthquake. The child's body began de-molding into a giant mess, cracking the pod it was in and severing the demon blood tubes.

"The aura is off the charts! Her body can't take it!" one of the scientists screamed as they all began to retreat.

Euryale stood still, watching the child deform and give off a distorted, demonic moan. Euryale smiled, but with a tear flowing down her face. "Another failure of mine. I'm sorry...my Aurora."

The pod burst and shattered, and a dense, red aura engulfed the child. Her body was still one big blob of skin, with the Divine Stone barely molded onto the surface. The red aura ceased its flow. The body continued to inflate before bursting like a bloody balloon. All that was left was a pool of blood, flesh, and the divine stone lying on the ground in a pile. Euryale wiped the blood off her face and left the room.

She walked up to one of the scientists and whispered in his ear, "Not a word of this to anyone. See to it the stone is safely put away and this mess is cleaned up. We'll try this again in two weeks."

After the operation failed, Euryale went back to the kingdom while the scientists and doctors ran more date and cleaned up the mess. Thirty minutes passed since her leaving, and a few scientists placed the biohazard tape on the door. While cleaning up, a piece of broken flesh jiggled around and was attracted to the much large pile with the stone inside

"The hell?" he said.

Suddenly, it began to move. All of the flesh and blood all moved back towards the divine stone, attracted like a moth to a flame. The blood and flesh converged around the stone. The flesh formed a red mold and slowly, bones, and skin began to form and take shape, bringing the once pile of flesh to the form of a person. It was the child, sporting her short red hair and finally opening her bright red eyes. Initially, the scientists were all fascinated by the spectacle.

She grew long claws and fangs as a dense red aura flowed around her like a tornado.

"I can't believe it! She's alive!" one screamed.

Suddenly, the child rammed her hand through the scientist's chest. He coughed up blood before she removed her hand. His aura couldn't heal his wound, and he bled out. All the other scientists freaked out and tried fleeing, but couldn't escape the red-headed demon-child. She swiftly chased them down and mercilessly murdered them one by one. None of their magic skill-sets couldn't combat her or keep them alive. She painted the lab with their blood and filled the forests with their screams, all without a single thought in her head.

A week later, Euryale returned to the laboratory, confused about what was going on. She hadn't heard word from any of the scientists all week. With the smell of blood and the sight of the building in poor condition, Euryale got cold feet. "No...no. No, no, no, no, no!" she cried.

She ran inside quickly to see most of her loyal scientists dead. All with some gaping flesh wound. Euryale freaked out, not because they were dead but because of who may have done it. With the Divine Stone nowhere to be found, Euryale began to deduce who may have done it. She slammed her hand against a wall, feeling responsible. She felt foolish not to have left a member of the militia for protection, and worse that, if she was correct, the perpetrators made off with the Divine Stone. Once again, she felt like a failure and cursed her blunder. She refused to stand for this.

Suddenly, Euryale heard a noise down the hall. She quickly drew her sword and prepared for combat. "I know you're here! Show yourself! Now!" Euryale called out.

Down the hall, one of the doors opened. Euryale slowly walked down the hall. She sweated more than usual, and her blood was in disarray. She slowly approached the back of the door. Euryale jumped around it and looked in the room. Her eyes opened wide and her jaw dropped. She was utterly speechless, seeing her child feasting on the flesh of a small animal. The sight of Aurora's blue and red eyes brought Euryale to tears. The girl was nice and healthy, and already a foot taller within a week. The divine stone remained sticking out in the center of her chest. Euryale thanked the heavens and was never happier in her entire life.

"My light...my Aurora." Euryale uttered.

Aurora growled and screamed before vanishing. Euryale jumped, and Aurora reappeared behind her and tried jamming her claws through Euryale. Euryale grabbed Aurora with her scorpion tail and subdued her.

"Look at you! Was that displacement? Incredible you inherited such an advanced technique!" Euryale laughed.

Aurora still tried to squirm and claw her away out, but Euryale's grip only tightened. "You're so unstable, but you're alive! Need to call that buzzard Merlin. He may have something to keep you under wraps. You're going to do great things!"

Aurora looked into the eyes of Euryale and calmed down for the first time. She didn't know what to make of anything but felt a sense of calm, or rather, a sense of comfort.

**_Current day_ **

Aurora just finished telling Jason of the events in which she could remember. Jason stood dumbfounded, relating to Aurora's tragic story. While his past isn't one he likes to revisit, he never imagined someone had an origin so dark.

"That was probably the last and only time Euryale showed me any semblance of love. For years I followed her command without question and endured her torture. I thought that was love and compassion until a very good friend of mine taught me otherwise. I owe her everything for that. She gave me the courage to start standing against her. To start thinking and living for myself."

Jason crossed his arms. "That's one awesome friend you have."

"Had," Aurora said, shaking.

"Aurora...I'm sorry."

"It's ok! I'm better for it. But my life is directly linked to this stone. If it were to separate from my body, I'd die. Same if I overuse its power. That's the overwhelming curse of the Divine Sorcerer's stone."

"And you said that each stone has its own unique ability. Also, unlike any ordinary magic user, you can utilize more than one elemental ability. Fire, water, wind, earth, and even lightning, all at once. Is that what your stone does?" Jason asked.

Aurora laughed. "You're sharp. Yes, it's the elemental stone. There's also one more ability that I have yet to master: metal. The strain on my body is too great, and I have to be careful not to overuse the stone's power."

"That's actually pretty coo-

"No! It's not!" Aurora shouted.

Jason stumbled back.

"Ugh, I'm sorry Jason. It's just, this is just another thing that proves I belong to Euryale. This stone was one she discovered. Not only that, but this body is one she created with a bunch of different things! I don't even know who I was before she turned me into this. I don't even have a real heart! Everything about me is manufactured." Aurora said with tears flowing. "Which is why I want to find a stone that can remove this one and give me a real body. One I can live and die in normally. One where I'm not magically bound to Euryale. One where I'm not just a home to a destructive weapon. One where I can truly adventure in, because that's what makes me happy."

Aurora looked back at the building. She fired a wave of powerful flames at the building, encasing it in the thick, flickering fire. The smell of melted wood, iron, and carcass filled the air, along with the dense smoke. "I want to leave my past behind, and burn it all."

Jason took in her powerful words and grinned. "So, you're not in it just for the thrill. Your goal is admirable, Aurora. But you're wrong about one thing." Jason walked up to her and placed his fist in the middle of her chest. "You may have a... weird way of handling things, but your heart is real. One hundred percent." he smiled.

As if an echo from the past rang in Aurora's ears, her heart raced. Those were the exact words she heard all those years ago from Alicia. The déjà vu was strong. Aurora was relieved and heart warmed. She wiped the tears off her face and smiled. Yet, just seeing his face swirled up a world of pain. That day a year and some change ago, seeing Alicia's dying breath, it was all internally overwhelming. She felt that her idea was the only way to make amends. She grabbed his hand and squeezed it, much to Jason's surprise.

"Jason, I know you've been through a lot with your clan, but I'm serious about discovering these stones. But even if you still want to go alon-

Jason pulled his hand away. "You seriously want to join me?"

Aurora saw the fire in his eyes. She just nodded.

"Okay. But on one condition. I need you to take me somewhere. Right now."

Aurora swallowed her spit. "Sure. Where to?"

Jason hesitated. "Home."

They hopped on Aurora's broom again and headed south. Aurora followed Jason's direction, yet she didn't need it. She recognized this particular route. After flying for a few hours, far away from the inner kingdom, the forestry was filled with less tall, full, green vibrant trees and more barren, frail, black trees. There were also some on the ground, along with craters everywhere. Aurora acknowledged they were below her but didn't want to even look at them. Jason however had his stare fixated on the aftermath below. They eventually found themselves directly over a desolate village. There were several wooden houses that either had gaping holes in the roof, were collapsed to the ground, or only had the foundation standing, surrounded by black debris. Any grass that grew in this village was reduced to black soot. Much like the forest, it appeared like the aftermath of a long, extensive battle. Aurora and Jason both went down to the ground. Aurora noticed his stone-cold face.

"Jason, are you sure you want to be here?"

"I have to. Just follow me."

The two walked through the remnants of the village. Aurora finally understood what Jason felt when she took him inside her lab. Aurora may have tangoed with the Skewer Ops, but she never saw the inside of Furasaku village. Even if it was mostly destroyed, it was so small. It was barely the size of a small neighborhood within her kingdom. Her heartstrings were being tugged just by being there. She never thought Alicia and Jason grew up in a small place like that.

After walking through, they reached the back of the village. Aurora's eyes were gaping. She saw many gravestones, maybe two hundred of them. The graveyard was almost bigger than the village.

"If you don't want to walk through, you don't have to. But I've to say goodbye to my family." Jason muttered as he walked forward.

Aurora's tear ducts felt full again. She watched as he knelt in front of two gravestones next to each other. She walked closer to see hear in, but something caught her eye. She looked at one of the gravestones and saw the names were clawed in with something, likely a blade. _Did he really create all of this by himself?_

"Hey mom. Hey Fasha. I know it's been a while, but I've been running around Gennomy, the usual. I still haven't found dad, but I actually found a Divine Stone today! Two actually. Found out that each one apparently is unique, which is kinda dumb but, it's whatever. Just know that you guys won't have to wait on me much longer. I'm gonna bring you all back."

Aurora listened on to Jason speak to his lost family, but as he did, she decided to walk around the graveyard. She looked at every name, and not once did she see 'Alicia'. _How is the leader of the Skewer Ops not buried here?_

Aurora went to Jason's side as he went on. His next words struck her.

"I will bring you back. And I'll also find the monster who did this to you." his hair flickered, as did his red aura. "I'll regrow our forest with their blood."

Aurora pitied him and felt no one had to suffer like that. Aurora looked at the tombstones to see the names of his mom and friend. Shannon Furasaku was likely his mom. The other one read Fasha Furasaku, and right under it read '3rd leader of the Skewer Ops'. Aurora's heart dropped.

Jason finished and turned around. He was happy to see Aurora by his side, but confused to see her so pale.

"You okay?" Jason asked.

Aurora snapped out of it. "Oh, I'm good! Sorry. It's just, it's all so heavy...ya know? I've only ever heard of the incident, so seeing the aftermath is an experience to say the least." she laughed nervously.

Just beyond the horizon, the black sky slowly turned a brighter blue. The two of them saw the starlit sky have a gradient of blue and orange. The sun started to rise. They hadn't even realized the entire night had already passed.

Jason smiled. "I appreciate you coming here with me. I just wanted to visit since I may not be back for a while."

"Don't say that. We're gonna find the stone you need and bring them all back ASAP!" Aurora said, pumping her fist.

Jason smiled after seeing the seriousness in her eyes that reflected the rising sun. "Woah there, let's not get ahead of ourselves. We're gonna find the stones fast so long as you don't cause any trouble. Needless to say, I doubt that will happen." he teased.

"What!? You're the one who broke into the castle! If anyone is a trouble maker it's you!"

"Says the one who defied the Queen and broke a prisoner out of a dungeon. And the one who let that sorcerer nearly destroy a human town so you could get more of a fight out of him."

"Wait, how do you know about Raiko?"

"How do you think I followed you, dumbass?" Jason said as he walked out the graveyard. "We should go. Also, you better not slow me down on this venture."

"Slow you down? I was hoping you wouldn't slow ME down! Don't forget I can fly and teleport!" Aurora barked.

"Those gimmicks only work if you have a brain."

"What did you say? Do I need to lock you up again!"

Jason laughed. He hadn't had friendly banter like that in a long time. Just being around her reminded him of better times. She was a sadist in some ways, yes, but her atmosphere felt so warm to him.

"Aurora, let's find the Divine Sorcerer's Stones together."

Aurora beamed. "Hell yeah!"

Aurora initially considered telling Jason the truth in her involvement with the Skewer Ops, and about Alicia. But she decided against it, seeing it better to not stir up negativity and just hope that bringing them back can undo her sin. With that thought, Aurora summoned her broom and the two flew off on it, soaring through the now sunlit sky. Aurora was at her peak. She threw her hands up in excitement as they danced through the clouds, with the wind flowing through their clothes and hair. Aurora felt at the time she was prepared for a grand adventure, ready to take on the world. However, she was ill-prepared for what was lying in wait at the end of the tunnel. Another thing she wasn't aware of was the tiny, fly-sized scorpion resting on her leg, with glowing red eyes, watching her every move.

_**Meanwhile...** _

Far away from the Pearl Kingdom, deep within the confines of a cave, stood two hooded individuals, bowing down to a woman. The woman sat in a throne made of solid stone, and placed her hand on her cheek. She was wrapped from almost head to toe in bandages. She had only her right arm, and her left eye was also covered in bandages. Her eye glowed a fierce purple, and her sharp fangs pierced her black lips. Her long, dreaded hair were all snakes, and hissed violently. She sighed, bored from listening to the reports of her subjects.

"Raiko was captured and Raji and Kaji were killed? Good thing they were removed. Those loose lipped simpletons could've ruined everything."

"Yes mi'lady. It's also a good thing your sister is so impatient. The wench doesn't even know how to interrogate properly." one of them said, being a male in appearing to be in his 20's.

The woman glared at him with discontent, and her snakes hissed violently. Their eyes glowed red. "Do not speak about her like that. You haven't earned the right, rat."

The man giggled. "Of course, 'your highness'! I didn't mean to bad mouth a member of the glorious family. A family you abandoned. Of the fallen empire that you helped to take down. That she failed to uphold!" he teased.

The hooded girl next to him was a lot younger, and sported a silver pentagram necklace. "Don't speak to her like that! You forget yourself, demon!"

"Says the orphan..."

The girl summoned a long, black katana and held it directly at his neck. "You're noisy, and would be better off quiet. I'll send you to Fraizen's door!"

He laughed in her face. "You think you can hurt me with that!? Try me, you little punk."

"Children, children! Put down your toys, there's no need for us to squabble over such a trivial matter." she said in a calming, soothing voice. "Yes, she is impatient, and it will lead not only to her downfall, but the entire council's. Speaking of which, I must thank our little info broker. Make sure they're payed handsomely."

"Right. Of course, mi'lady." they both responded.

Suddenly, a striking pain surged through her body. She yelled in agony and grabbed her shoulder before falling to her knees. It felt as if her body was being torn apart, similar to Aurora's curse. Her flesh tore as fast as it could repair. Her veins revealed themselves through her bandages, and blood spewed from her arm and both her legs, seeping through the bandages. She clinched her teeth so hard they could crack.

The two ran to her side to help her up. "Are you alright?" the girl asked.

" **Let go of me!** " The woman's purple aura spiked, and blew the both of them away with it's immense power. The cave shook, and her rage could be felt throughout the entire forest.

 _To think the council did this much damage. It's been twenty years yet she still has this much..._ the demon thought.

"She did this to me! They did this to me! They will pay, and give back what they'd taken from me!" she yelled in a fury.

"Great, now she's in a mood. I blame you." the demon sighed.

"Enough of this! Continue your searches! Gather enough magic, and find the Divine Sorcerer's Stones! We must gather everything to get my body back to full health, my magic back to one hundred percent! Then we'll bring the world superpowers to their knees! GO! NOW!"

The two of them were taken by surprise, not expecting to be sent out so quickly. "Right, Lady Medusa!" they said as they both ran off.

Medusa calmed down, and while still in immense pain, climbed back into her chair. _Sister, you will answer for your betrayal, as will the rest of you lot of heathens!_


	10. Itesteria

**_May 6th, 2015_ **

Just two weeks after fleeing the inner Pearl Kingdom and starting their journey, Aurora and Jason find themselves hiding behind a tree, sweating and panting under their hoodies and mask. Aurora looked up to the night sky, with sweat flowing down her face and a smile creeping on. She threw off her hood and mask and shook her hair.

"Now this is what I'm takin about!" she said with a laugh. She looked towards her demon companion, who had a much different expression. His face was masked, but by the view of his eyes practically bulging out, she could tell he was under duress. "C'mon Jason, enough cat and mouse! Let's show them what we can do!"

Suddenly, a shuriken the size of a bicycle flew right above their heads, cutting the tree behind them in half. After nearly losing their heads, they both swiftly evaded to hide behind another tree. "Put your hood and mask back on idiot! If they find out who you are, we will be in much deeper shit."

Aurora groaned and pouted before doing so. Jason held tight to a large brown sack tied around his waist. He knew full well stealing was wrong, but with their journey ahead and a lack of funds, he felt they needed any and everything they could find. He just wished there wasn't any of the Magic Militia on duty. He peeked around a tree to see the two figures atop a wyvern (a winged dragon with only two legs), casting a silhouette from the full moon. One was significantly bigger and bulkier than the other.

"In the name of the Queen of the Pearl Kingdom, for crimes of theft and resistance, you two are under arrest!" the bulkier one called out. "Surrender now. Drop your weapons, and remove your masks immediately!"

Jason looked to his right to see Aurora's hands shaking, and her claws growing. It was like watching a crack addict go through withdrawals. Every inch of her body was itching and screaming at her to take her opponents apart. Jason saw it coming from a mile away.

Jason grabbed her wrist. "Don't even think about it! We're out of here."

Jason dragged her and sprinted in the other direction before crashing into what fell like a brick wall. Disoriented and watery-eyed, Jason got up, realizing there was no surface before him. He placed his hand up and felt a surface that began to emit a translucent yellow light. "You've gotta be kidding."

Aurora tried her displacement ability to get beyond this invisible wall but found she couldn't. Her access to the space was restricted, meaning one thing. Aurora grinned. "Spatial barrier magic. Well played, Militia."

Aurora and Jason turned around to see their pursuers jump to the ground. The bulkier one appeared to be around seven feet and chiseled to the point of nearly tearing his uniform. He was blonde, with a full cut beard and a face that looked like a fist. He had a yellow monkey tail flicker behind him and thick blonde fur on his hands. His fangs showed on his smile. His red militia jacket had a black scorpion over the right side of his chest and two swords embroidered on his shoulder. His yellow aura surrounded his body, flowing steadily. He was known as Browlen Kong, holding the Knight Rank, one of the middle ranks of the Magic Militia.

"You were within range, and now you're done. Nothing gets in or out of my closed space dome." he said, before holding out his hand. "Now, hand over the stolen goods, and turn yourselves in. We don't want to have to get rough with a couple of kids."

"Bring it, bitch!" Aurora yelled.

Jason swung his arm in front of her. "She does not speak for both of us!"

His partner arose an eyebrow, glaring at him with her sky-blue eyes. She stood just a bit taller than Aurora. She had dark skin, black short hair, and small antlers pointing out from her head. She wore the same uniform, however, had no embroidery on her shoulder. Her name was Katrina Itami, holding the Private Rank of the militia, entry level.

"We? You just wanted me to help you catch them, not fight them! One of them is a demon. That's far too dangerous Browlen! And you're supposed to be of the Knight rank."

Browlen noticed the anxiety in his partner's face. He whispered low enough to where only she could hear him. "C'mon Katrina don't lose face. Just think about it. Capturing these thieves with this much power can ger people talking."

Katrina's eyes darted to her partner.

"You do want people to know your name, especially the Queen. And when that happens."

A smile smeared onto her face. "No need to say it twice."

"Hey!" Aurora shouted from below. "You two done game planning? If you wanna fight then less talking."

"Can you not!" Jason yelled at her.

Browlen laughed. "See they're raring for punishment. Can't say I'm surprised, given a demon is among them."

Jason's eye twitched. "You mind repeating that?"

"Oh, did I hit a nerve there, little demon? Go on, show us what your kind is truly like."

Jason scoffed. "You military are all alike! You haven't changed at all." Jason's hand slowly reached for the sheath of his dagger. _This barrier doesn't give us a lot of options. The only way to break it and get out of here is right through them. Damn it all._

Aurora looked at Jason and smiled. With him ticked, she knew he'd be down to fight.

"Hey, let's rip 'em a new one. But don't kill them." Jason said to Aurora.

Aurora's focus was thrown off by that statement. She just shook it off. "Yeah!"

They both dashed in, Jason with his dagger and Aurora with her witch blade.

"Crap uh! Damn!" Katrina stumbled, getting her stomach in a twist.

Browlen stood directly in front of Katrina. "Just treat it like the academy! Formation C, now Katrina!"

With an open shot at Browlen, both aimed their blades and swung. The both of them were repelled by another barrier, knocking them both off balance. Aurora looked up and saw Katrina right above her, eclipsing the moon above. Katrina's hands spewed glowing molten lava, that in a split second formed twin swords in her hands. She swiped them down, striking another translucent barrier, catching her and her superior by surprise.

Aurora snickered as her and Jason regained her balance. "You're not the only one who can do that, primate."

Browlen grinned, having another trick up his sleeve. He swung his arm down in a chopping motion, and a thin wall of aura split the ground and cut right through Aurora's barrier, separating him from Katrina, and Aurora from Jason.

"Formation D, now!" Browlen yelled.

"Divide and conquer? Fine but I'll be done before you!" Katrina boasted.

"That's the spirit private!"

"Oh, hell yeah." Aurora licked her lips.

 _This guy is skilled. His aura manipulation is better than Aurora's. He's a Knight alright, but how does he fight?_ As Jason had that thought, the seven-foot behemoth swung his giant fist right into Jason's forearm. He felt a crunch that made him grunt and wince. His body flew back into the surface of the barrier. He struggled to get back on his feet, with his arm numb and a deep, dark red. Jason's eyes watered and he could hear his heart pounding through his ears.

"Oh, is that the sound of broken bones? You demons love to heal, but that'll cost a ton of aura." Browlen mocked.

"Worry about yourself!"

Browlen charged at him, forcing Jason to scurry and avoid his fists of calamity.

Jason stayed on the run, thinking of an opening to expose that wouldn't resort in one of them dying. Meanwhile, Aurora and the younger soldier clashed blades with each other, spraying sparks of metal around the forest floor and keeping each other on the move. Neither of which provided any opening.

Katrina started enjoying the confrontation. "Magic manipulation to create a blade is rare! You're interesting."

"What's rare is the militia hiring kids."

"Kid? My talents supersede my age! Plus, from the looks of it, I'm older than you!" Katrina barked. "Besides, this _kid_ is countering every move you make! You're so predictable. Is this all you can do?"

"No, but I don't want this to be over too quickly, ya know?"

Katrina's face brightened up. "You're kind of annoying chicka'. That tongue of yours needs to be taken."

With the swing of her free hand, along metal chain with a spear at the end shot towards Aurora's head. Caught by surprise she barely managed to avoid it. However, in the process, her hood flew off and her mask was pierced. Her long, red hair drooped down, and her face was revealed. Katrina halted immediately after getting a good look. Noticing her eyes, now matched with her face, along with seeing the tattoo coiling around her neck, and she knew who she was. She staggered and dropped her sword.

"Dick! I liked that hoodie! Do you know how long it'll take to re-stitch that?" Aurora complained.

"Can't be. Princess...Aurora?" Katrina uttered.

Browlen stopped dead in his tracks. "What!?" he yelled. After seeing her, he too was stunned. "What's a member of the royal family doing with a rapscallion like that?"

Jason caught his breath, grabbing his numbing arm from Browlen's last attack. He gritted his teeth, frustrated that Aurora's identity along with their past crimes was going to make life a lot harder for them.

"This is, unreal. What are you doing...out here with a demon? Stealing magic items?" Katrina asked.

Jason tilted his head. _Wait, they're soldiers and don't know?_

"Hey, let's switch. Mines stopped fighting." Aurora yelled to Jason.

Jason swiftly reached into his brown sack. It was time to take action with them distracted. He pulled out small black diamonds and threw them onto the ground. A thick, black fog covered the entire area and obscured their vision. Jason aimed his numb arm towards Browlen. _This will hurt like hell, but here goes nothing!_ He fired a thorn that cut through the smoke and pierced Browlen in his right shoulder. He screamed in agony and fell harder than a building. With that attack, his dome barrier lifted.

"Browlen!" Katrina shrieked.

Jason dashed towards Aurora, and the two scurried off in the fog-infested chaos.

**_***_ **

An hour later, Aurora and Jason reach a spot in the forest to rest and catch their breath, recounting what they have seen thus far.

"Wowie, that was fun, wasn't it!?" Aurora giggled.

Jason rolled his eyes and took off his mask and hoodie. "O' Omni, what a day. You're a piece of work, you know that?"

"As much as I hate to say it, I am royalty. What do you expect?"

"You sure as hell don't act like it."

Aurora blushed. "Aww, you mean it? Thank you!"

Jason groaned and fell on his back. He held his numbing arm, which finally healed to the bone, thanks to his demonic aura. Aurora displaced his sack into her hand and opened it, revealing small tiny crystal shards. Some were black, some were red, and some were purple. The pouch also had several gold coins.

"You know, I could've bought these with my mother's tab. We didn't have to steal them." Aurora said.

"And you don't know the first thing about survival. We couldn't risk your name being known, you know, because you attacked the Queen of this nation and fled the castle. And I, your accomplice, attempted to steal a Divine Stone from said castle. We're international criminals! OR, so I thought." Jason buried his face in his hands. "Why did they not know about it? They're Militia, right? Top dog military? Serve the council and the people? I don't get it."

Aurora sat closer to him and moved his hands from his face. "Hey, don't worry 'bout it. Good thing is we got away. Bad thing is we didn't get to go all out, but oh well. They may be back."

Jason cut his eyes at his friend. "Your priorities are out of whack."

"Oh c'mon, we want the same things. Well, sorta. But on the bright side, we're near the next town to investigate."

Aurora pulled out a map, showing the land. Most of the Pearl Kingdom, as they've come to learn is forestry, with towns sprinkled outside of the inner kingdom. The map showed the vast region and its border with Itesteria, a neighboring country to the west. The closest town on there was Vanland, which is right on the border and a few miles from where their location.

"I hope by investigate you don't mean attack people with questions. We're in a tough spot as is. But Itesteria sounds good. Should be able to make it in a few hours. That teleportation gimmick of yours would be really useful right about now."

Aurora scratched her head nervously. "I can teleport long distances, but it would drain me. The effects could cause my stone to go into disarray and kill me."

"Useless!" Jason sat up. "In any event, we need to get out of here. The information is dire and at least in that region the Militia can't just waltz in."

"Wait, can we sleep out here tonight?" Aurora asked.

"What? I assumed you hated the woodsy outdoors, princess. Wouldn't you perform a nice, warm bed? Or even a futon?"

"My bed was nice, but it's not every day you get to see a sky like this." Aurora said as she looked up at the moonlit sky and the stars dazzling within it. The same sky she'd seldomly see when out with her former best friend way back when. It brought back a lot of pleasant memories and a warmth to her heart. "It's beautiful. Also, call me princess again, and I'll deep fry you." she smiled.

**_**************_ **

Meanwhile, the two Militia sat in their little base camp tent within the forest. They both sat in the middle of the tent with the injured Knight, Browlen, on a medical bed. Katrina wrapped Browlen's shoulder with gauze and held him steady as he groaned. The burning intensified as the bandages made contact with his wound, in which his aura could barely heal. Browlen bit hard on his lip as the pain surged through his body.

Browlen felt this pain before. The last time he'd seen a demon was around the time he started in the Militia years ago. Their glowing red eyes and razor-sharp teeth sent chills down his spine back then. The threat of the skewers of the Furasaku was enough to take anyone out, and enough to make Browlen's blood churn whenever he thought about it, especially the face of that man. "Can't believe they're back." Browlen grumbled in a rugged, painfilled voice.

"Neither can I! Isn't it exciting?" she giggled.

"Knew you'd be pumped about this, damn nerd."

Katrina looked back to the thorn that pierced him, which was about the size of her forearm, and covered in blood. "Furasaku clan was infamous, especially in the First Great War, but I only heard of them in textbooks. Yet we fought a real live one, and he's strong! Strong enough too if your fists didn't kill him on impact."

"Yeah, the Skewer Ops syndicate they had were always a pain in the ass. Whoever dealt with them did the world a solid." Browlen groaned in pain, as Katrina tied a bandage too tight. "Your hands were not made for the medical field!"

"Sorry! I'm a blacksmith and a wielder, not a medic. Stop crying and stay still. Oh, and I'm keeping that thorn by the way. So rare. And meeting Euryale's daughter too? She's strong for a princess, but she is of the Gorgon clan."

"Guess it runs in the family."

"Today's full of surprises. Too bad they're crimina-"

"Alright, enough! Hand me the crystal."

Katrina handed him a pink, cubic, glowing crystal. "We only have one each. You sure you want to use that now? It's still a prototype."

"Doesn't matter, we have a job to do and you have the medical knowledge of a toddler." Browlen crushed the crystal in his hand, and suddenly, the wound closed. He ripped off the bandages, showing his shoulder completely healed to the bone. However, there was a slight, pulsing ache he'd feel. "Yeah, it's a prototype alright, but still amazing! Icarus is one hell of a miracle worker."

 _Talking about a Council member so casually? How'd you get your rank?_ Katrina thought, shaking her head. "You're welcome by the way."

After talking more about their recent run-in, they saw a purple light flash in the corner of their tent, behind a few of their bags.

"The communication orb!" Katrina panicked as she frantically ran towards it.

She grabbed the purple, crystal orb and ran back to her superior. "Browlen, do the thing."

"Better not be Caroline on another prank call." he sighed. "Knight Browlen of the Magic Militia, answering."

Appearing on the purple surface of the crystal orb was Queen Euryale. She was in her red night robe with her hair wrapped in a towel and had a glass of red wine in her right hand. Katrina's face lit up at the sight of her queen.

"Knight Browlen, Private Katrina."

"Your excellency!" they both said in unison.

"You two didn't give your evening reports by 11 P.M. Care to explain why two soldiers of the world's most prestigious army have all of a sudden forgotten protocol? It's quite irritating to have to check on my soldiers during my relaxation time."

Both Browlen and Katrina sweated and darted their eyes elsewhere, as the scheduled report completely slipped their minds.

"Mi'lady, please forgive my superior and I's negligence. We are prepared to accept any punishment you give." Katrina said.

"We? Dick..." Browlen cried, grabbing his aching shoulder.

"I do wish to inform you however that we were preoccupied with an attempted theft in our post of Moro Town. It's also my displeasure to announce that the thieves were-"

"My daughter and a survivor of the Furasaku clan, correct?"

Both soldiers were taken aback. "Mi'lady, you knew?" Katrina asked.

"Of course. Nothing gets past me, Knight. The two are branded criminals, and per your allegiance, you were right in pursuing them, even if you both botched it. I watched the whole thing." she said with a light laugh.

Browlen scratched his head "How's that possible? I don't understand."

"Questioning your Queen twice in a row can be quite hazardous to your health. I'd watch it if I were you, primate."

Browlen's lips sealed shut.

"If you must know." Euryale showed her hand, revealing a small scorpion crawling on it. "With these precious babies, I can see anything. They're like my little spies. Just shrink one down to micro-level and I can see my daughter's every move. However, they roam free because I allow it, and you are not to pursue or prosecute them going forward. Neither will you alert other militia of this incident. Understood?"

Browlen couldn't believe it. "But, mi'lady the demo-

"Understood, Primate?" she said with a sterner tone.

"Yes, understood," he said, staring to the ground.

"Excellent. Now, I'm reassigning you both from patrol work to a mission in our neighboring country, Itesteria."

The Queen gave them all the details of their mission, which only left them stunned and had their jaws on the ground. After the transmission ended, the two soldiers stared at each other with concern.

"Been years since I dealt with something like this. Maybe a certain _monster_ is back on the loose. Browlen cracked his knuckles. "Good, 'cuz I've got a score to settle."

Katrina's eyes were fixated on the ground. It looked as if she'd seen a ghost. Browlen had a feeling this particular mission would deal with something a lot heavier than what she was used to.

"Don't lose face again Private. This is your first real mission that isn't patrolling. If it's to be successful, you've got to step up."

Katrina glanced over at Browlen with shaky eyes. In spite of her being completely anxious she cracked a smile. "If we are successful, I'll definitely stick out since I'm so young."

Browlen folded his arms, glad to see her mood recover quickly. "Don't get too overconfident now. You've never dealt with something like this. One screw up and you'll lose more than a chance at a higher rank. A mission like this has more than one life at stake."

"Yeah, yeah I hear you. You won't have to worry about that though. There's a reason I'm the youngest member of the Militia." Katrina created a sword in her left hand and pointed it at him. "Five years tops and you'll be taking orders from me. I'm gonna nab a council seat!"

Browlen facepalmed. "And all to create some fancy sword. You sure you're military material?"

"Fancy sword? You've some nerve mocking a Celestial Weapon! A weapon I'll forge." Katrina pointed one of her swords at him. "Once I make one the whole world will know my name. Count on it. And if I'm not military material, it's your fault for enlisting me."

"Whether you create a celestial whatever or not, you're a soldier now. Don't think these missions going forward will be easy. It'll be nothing like the academy or training. Just be careful and remember what I told you."

"Right my mind is my sharpest blade. I know."

"And you're not just in it for yourself anymore. Never let your guard down. It could put someone else in danger."

"Yeah, yeah. Got it."

She put her sword away and prepared for her new mission. While preparing, she wondered what they'd encounter, and if it would be anything like Aurora and Jason, or something much worse.

Browlen tossed a whistle to Katrina for her to hold on to. "Don't lose the Wyvern whistle, unless you want to travel all the way there and back on foot."

"Why do I have to carry it?"

"You're still a private. Follow orders."

Katrina rolled her eyes as she placed the whistle in her pocket.

**_*******_ **

The next day, Jason and Aurora strolled into Vanland. The town was gothic, with a lot of old buildings with black coloring and weird, sharp architecture. It was an overcast sky, and the pair walked the empty streets. No moving cars or horses, no people running the streets, no pixies or dragons flying around the sky, and seemingly no places open at all.

"Wow, this place is a ghost town. Even for a town like this, it's weird for it to be so quiet." Aurora mentioned.

"All the same, we need to find a place to buy a few things and get information. First is food, so we don't pass out."

They arrived at a small convenience store only to find it closed. "In the middle of the day? Something isn't right." Jason said as he knocked on the window. "Hello, anyone there?"

"You think they're going to answer to a demon banging on their door?"

Jason glared at Aurora. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Jason, something's got these people shutting themselves in. It's the morning after all, and not a soul is out. Something is causing them to do this."

Jason noticed Aurora's attitude was much more serious. She wasn't giggling or giving her usual quips. Her face was focused and concerned. "Who are you, and what did you do with Aur-"

Aurora heard a wisp fly past her ear and heard Jason grunt. When she looked back over to her friend, she saw his blood splattered on the window.


	11. Fraizen

She saw an arrow pierce his right arm, spraying some of his blood on the window. He grunted and stumbled, staggered from the impact. Aurora readied her witch-blade, searching for the attacker.

"OW! What the fuck!?" Jason cried out as he yanked the arrow out of his arm.

Aurora saw a woman covered in a tarp, aiming an old crossbow at them from atop a nearby building. She fired another arrow, which Aurora knocked away with her witch blade. The woman jumped at the sight. She got up from her position and ran off in the opposite direction.

"Oh no you don't," Aurora said.

The woman ran, reloading her crossbow. Suddenly, Aurora stood right before her, glaring with intensity. "Hi."

The woman leaped back and aimed her crossbow once again. Aurora teleported in front of her and grabbed hold of the weapon, crushing it with a single hand. She discarded the destroyed weapon and stood over the now fear-struck, shaken woman. Aurora, being face to face with her, got a much better look at her. She had raggedly brown hair, brown eyes, and pointy ears. She was covered in dirt and scuff marks and wore old, slightly ripped clothes.

"Y-You'll pay for what you've done! You monsters!" she yelled as she pulled a knife out of her pocket.

Aurora grabbed the woman's hand before she could attempt to stab her. Aurora noticed the pentagram necklace dangling from her neck. "Monsters? Isn't it a bit rude to call travelers monsters?"

Jason finally caught up with Aurora, leaping up to the roof of the building. The woman saw his wound was gone, and was confused as to why. "It's equally rude to fire arrows at them! That could've killed anyone else."

The woman broke Aurora's grip and got some distance between them. She started eyeing down Aurora and Jason, taking in their appearances. "You. That hair, and tattoo. You're not. Are you...?"

Aurora internally rolled her eyes. _Here comes the infinite ass-kissing._ "Yes, I'm Princess Aurora. No, you don't have to bow, and yes, I forgive you for trying to hurt my friend," she said in a monotone.

The woman noticed Jason's eyes, claws, and his fast healing ability. "Your friend is a demon?"

Jason had the same reaction Aurora had. "Is there anywhere where we won't be judged based off who we are?"

"I thought you were...it. I saw your blade...and you wore all black. " The woman staggered in pain and fell to her knees.

"Woah, are you okay?!" Jason asked as he ran to her side.

He felt her rib cage, and his hand got moist and warm. He lifted it to see the crimson red glistening. Upon sight, Jason felt uneasy. His stomach turned, and images flew into his mind. Flashes of finding Fasha in a pool of her own blood. All he heard was static, with screams fading in and out.

"Jason!" Aurora yelled.

Jason snapped out of his trance, realizing the woman was losing consciousness. Jason ripped off a sleeve from his hoodie to wrap her wounds. With the little strength she had left, she told them the location of her home, and they took her there immediately.

When the woman came to, she was back in her living room, with Aurora and Jason standing over her. They wrapped her wound in gauze and told her to take it easy. In spite of their advice, she tried to get up.

"I have to kill it. I have to..."

"You have to sit down and relax." Jason urged.

Aurora noticed her small apartment had a lot of weaponry for wall décor. Swords, shields, daggers, all hanging on various places on the walls. The blades were dusty and even rusty in some cases. It was like they'd been there, unused, for years, decades even. It appeared more like an artillery than an apartment living room. It explained her having a crossbow. Aurora also noticed a small shrine in the corner of the room, with its highlight being candles and a pentagram, very similar to the one on her neck. After her freak-out, she finally gave her name, Mary.

"Ma'am, if you don't mind me asking, what's going on in this town?" Aurora asked.

Mary was hesitant to answer. "The queen sent you, didn't she?"

"No-"

"YES!" Jason interjected. "Queen Euryale sent us to investigate, but we don't have all the details yet. Do you know where everyone is?" Jason found it better that no one else knew of their crimes.

Mary sighed, favoring her side due to the pain. "They are either dead, missing, or hiding"

Both Jason and Aurora's lips tightened and eyes gaped.

Mary teared up feeling the heat rise in her face. "Someone or something is killing us all. They even took my husband." She buried her face in her hands.

"And you were out for revenge?" Jason asked.

She nodded. "We're told not to leave our homes by the police force, but they just killed the operation all together! I haven't seen a single policeman in days! I eventually took matters into my own hands. I was out late at night and saw something. It was wearing black, but it moved so fast and...I don't know. I just remember whatever it was spared my life. It was so dark. It was just a blur!" she panicked.

"Ma'am, it's okay. Trust and believe I understand." Jason's jaw tightened. A lot of people dead in a city sounded a lot like what happened to him. Considering how he took it, he knew that calming her down was the first step. He also knew good and well that comforting someone under stress wasn't his forte. He didn't know what else to say. _Think Jason, think. What would...what would Fasha do?_

Aurora placed her hand calmly on Mary's shoulder and gave her a tender smile. "Don't worry. We're here to get rid of this monster. I promise as Princess that I won't allow you or anyone else to get hurt. We'll get to the bottom of this, okay?"

"Are you...are you powerful enough? You are but a princess."

"Oh, trust me, I'm _much_ more than just a pretty face. I'm sure your crossbow can attest to that." Aurora winked at her.

Aurora's warmth was reassuring to Mary. She nodded and smiled back.

Aurora grabbed Jason and went into the other room to discuss a game plan.

"We've got to find the stones Aurora, don't get me wrong. But with no leads in weeks and now coming here, we've got to do something!" Jason said.

"I'm with you. Whatever is causing this is bad news."

Jason saw the smile creep onto Aurora's face. "Oh seriously?"

"Don't get me wrong, someone has to help them! And knowing towns outside of the kingdom, with no council member leading them, the police force won't cut it. But if it's as powerful as we think, may as well have some fun." Aurora snickered.

"People are dying and you're seeing this as a game?"

"It's okay Jason. Me and you, we can take anyone. Trust me, I promise I won't go overboard. I can cover a lot of ground on my broom, so I can investigate the rest of the town and look for clues. You can stay here and take care of the woman until I get back. With her willingness to go outside and shoot people with crossbows, leaving her alone is a bad idea."

Jason squinted his eyes at her. "You're going to go out there? And leave me here?"

"Glad you understand! See you in an hour! Bye!" Aurora vanished.

"Ah! You little!" Jason growled in frustration before going back to Mary.

"She's going to investigate the area. I'll be here with you for the moment." Jason grumbled in frustration.

Aurora flew over the town atop her broom. Aurora noticed the overcast sky became a lot darker and greyer. Aurora also felt the humidity in her hair. She felt rain on the horizon. The gloomy weather added on to the apocalyptic look of the town. It was as empty as she expected it to be. She tried her best surveying, hoping to find someone. Someone had to know more about whatever was harming people.

**_***_ **

At the same time, Katrina and Browlen strolled through the empty streets, going from door to door. Each person they attempted to talk to for information turned them away. Browlen's frustration grew, meanwhile Katrina was deep in thought. She'd never seen a city so vacant, so quiet. _I know the Queen said we were dealing with potential mass homicide, but_ w _hat are we really dealing with? Are me and Browlen enough? To think, someone and something has a place so cleared out, it doesn't make sense. And I, a private have to deal with it._

"Katrina, stop spacing out!" Browlen said.

"Oh! Sorry, my bad."

"Don't lose your nerve. Whatever is doing this, we're going to take them out. That's what all the training was for, so you'll be fine. Besides, you aren't the youngest militia ever for nothing, right?" he said with a big smile.

Katrina felt much more at ease. "Right, of course. Plus, imagine what people will say when I ring in this beast. _The youngest member of the Magic Militia takes out creature terrorizing town!_ Headline's got a nice ring to it!"

"Expected from you. Now let's hit another one of these houses. Maybe someone here can point us to the police station. It would've been nice if Queen Euryale gave us a map."

Katrina looked up and noticed a figure in the sky. She squinted her eyes, realizing it was a person. "Is that...a witch on a broom?"

"A witch flying in the middle of a ghost town? Reel her in! She could know something."

Aurora, while flying, saw two figures on the ground. She descended closer to get a look. At that moment, both parties recognized the other.

"YOU!" Browlen yelled.

"Oh shit."

Katrina fired off her chains into the air. The chain wrapped around Aurora, and Katrina yanked her down to the ground. "Princess Aurora. And you're alone? Where's your demon friend?"

Aurora looked up and smiled, eager for some action. However, she noticed Browlen's shoulder. "Don't worry about it. Speaking on missing things, the hole that was put in the primate's shoulder is gone. That fast? Not like he's a demon."

Katrina got flustered. "It's none of your business!"

Browlen laughed. "Primate huh? You're just like your mother."

A cord snapped. Aurora broke the chains with her sure strength and sprinted towards Browlen. With his giant hand, he blocked a punch that could be heard through the entire city. His body vibrated on impact with Aurora's fist, and the palm of his hand burned. In spite of that, the pain barely bothered Browlen at all.

"Don't ever compare me to her. Got it?" Aurora growled, baring her fangs.

Browlen sighed. "I suppose not. Even she wouldn't work with the enemy."

"What?"

"Princess, why on earth would you work with a Furasaku demon? Their Skewer Ops syndicate were a bunch of terrorists! Don't tell me he's brainwashed you."

Aurora fumed at the ears and wanted to punch him again. "He _isn't_ a terrorist and the Skewer Ops weren't evil! Just a little misguided is all. But my friend isn't like them."

"Really? Same claws, same eyes, same thorn magic, same stealing. I don't see how he's any different than those thirteen thugs."

"Will you two give it a rest already!" Katrina interrupted, having enough of their chatter. "You all can discuss politics another day. We have a serious crisis in this town and our mission is to deal with it."

Aurora stepped off. Browlen and her still had their glares on each other. "You're here about the monster, or, whatever has everyone hiding?"

Katrina was surprised Aurora knew the ordeal. "Yeah, that's right. You know anything? Regardless of your crime in Moro Town, we've been told to look the other way. Any help you can provide would be great."

"Private! You weren't supposed to disclose that info!" Browlen barked.

"It's not like she's our enemy. Any asset that can be used to complete the mission should, whether it's information or allies. You taught me that, remember?" she gave him a cheeky smile. "Besides, we've been here for hours and found nothing. She can be our first lead."

Aurora's confusion was at an all time high. Based on that, she came to the conclusion Euryale was turning a blind eye towards them. She wanted to know why, but, she reluctantly cooperated. Aurora recapped what they've learned from Mary. While not being much, it helped that there was a survivor that's come across the fiend before.

"That's a start. We can at least assume that whatever is causing this isn't just a mindless beast." Katrina said. "We should go to the police station, and see what they've investigated so far."

"Oh, that's just east of here a few blocks. I flew over it not too long ago."

"Perfect. Point us there and we'll be on our way chicka."

Browlen interjected after sitting on something that bothered him. "Wait. Don't you two think it's strange? Yes, no one is on the streets. But not even a task force. Even with something this dangerous, police should have these streets packed, especially at this hour. There was no one even at the border." 

"Woah, that is strange," Katrina added.

Aurora had a sinking feeling in her gut. "Well, let's not waste any time." Aurora reached out her hand. "My displacement can take us there instantly."

Browlen and Katrina first looked at each other, wondering if they could trust her. "Tell me Aurora, what are you doing here? What are you getting out of this?" Browlen asked.

Aurora giggled. "Finally, you stopped calling me princess. For starters, I know you'd like to save more people from dying." Aurora cracked her knuckles. "Secondly, I can possibly get a good fight out of it. I've been itching for some real action."

Browlen arose an eyebrow before laughing. "Your arrogance is...interesting. But if you're on our side, then you can be an asset. However, if you or the Furasaku do anything that would bring harm to the innocent or my partner, it'll get very ugly."

"I can at least agree that coming to blows can get ugly for one of us. Better be strong enough to hold your own. I won't protect you just because you're her soldiers," she winked.

Browlen joined hands with Aurora, and reluctantly, Katrina did as well. The three of them vanished and reappeared before the police station. Before they went in, they felt drizzle hit their heads. There were few windows, but the one it did have showed the inside being completely dark. It was as if they were out of business. The three of them got an odd feeling about it all. Browlen stepped forward and opened the door. It was unlocked, much to their surprise. Once open, a wave of an unfathomable stench hit their faces.

The two soldiers covered their mouths and nose, tearing up from the stench. Aurora on the other hand was unphased. Her eyes were wide, and a scowl of disgust was on her face. She knew the stench well. Aurora created a flame in the palm of her hand and the two walked inside.

"What in Omni's name happened here?" Katrina asked as they walked inside.

"They didn't stand a chance." Aurora mumbled to herself.

The front office was empty, but the further in they went, the more intense the smell was. On the right of the corridor, they saw a cracked door. Curious, Browlen headed straight for it and opened the door. Upon seeing what was inside, his intestines spiraled out of control. He turned away, not even wanting to face the reality of what he saw.

"It's best you two don't look."

Aurora and Katrina peered around the large soldier and saw the room painted in red, and bodies filled with flies and maggots. Katrina turned tail and vomited down the hall. Aurora just got infuriated, and oddly a bit nostalgic. Aurora noticed, in spite of the bodies of cops all around, the room itself wasn't completely desolate. It appeared like more of an assassination than a fight.

"Primate, whoever did this was no ordinary being," Aurora said.

Browlen took a closer look at the corpses. Each of them had some type of slash wound or was missing an appendage. "This was done by a blade. It was a person who did this." Browlen felt a boiling heat overtake his body. He ground his fangs together, and his breathing escalated. "Who would do such a thing? An unthinkable, unforgettable crime! They're trying to commit genocide!"

Aurora placed her hand on the anger-filled soldier. "Browlen. It's tough to take in, I know. But we're going to find who did this."

Browlen laughed nervously. "It's just like that time nine years ago. The bodies stacked up and butchered. Maybe the Red-Assassin has returned."

Aurora was taken aback and her heart sank. "Red-Assassin?" she shrieked.

"Yeah. A cold-hearted demon that only stacked bodies a while ago. Between that fiend and the skewer ops, I don't know who's worse. I feel like either party is capable of doing this."

Aurora saw Browlen's face tense up even more. It was almost as if he were fighting off tears. Aurora said nothing initially, then broke the silence. "Before we conspire, we should bag these bodies. You should check on your friend by the way."

Browlen just realized Katrina wasn't in the room with them and scurried out to check on her. Aurora meanwhile stayed to clean up the corpses. The more she thought about it, about that name, the more frustrated she grew. The thought of that past was beyond revolting. It was no longer about just a fight for Aurora. She wanted to repay this assassin with interest.

Browlen ran to his partner. She had her hands and knees in the ground, shaking as if she were in the arctic. "Private! Pull it together!"

Katrina didn't even look at Browlen. She couldn't even stomach it. "All those bodies...they're all.." she covered her mouth to hold back.

"Private, you're a soldier. A member of the elite army ran by the Magic Council. Surely you didn't think we'd never encounter corpses in this line of work? Did you already forget why you became a soldier at all?"

Struggling to get to her feet, Katrina regathered her wits, still torn about the scene. She shook her head and walked with Browlen back to the crime scene _. Remember why you're doing this Katrina. You have to climb the ranks and get that information. To create a Celestial Weapon. The world will revere you! Suck it up._ She struggled to walk back with Browlen to the crime scene, before turning back to vomit more.

Browlen sighed, knowing she still had ways to go.

The next few hours they spent investigating, gathering clues while also cleaning up the mess left behind by the culprit. They found even more bodies, making the young Katrina even sicker. They eventually came across a room which caught Aurora's attention.

"Guys, check this out," she told them.

As the militia went in went her, they saw more bodies. However, what stood out with this room was the pentagram painted on the wall with the blood of the victims. Aurora and Katrina immediately recognized this symbol.

"Fraizen, God of fate," Katrina said.

"That's what it represents?" Aurora asked.

"A disgusting religion that gives people the excuse to do whatever they want. Believing every action is predestined. It's awful, trust me. Not surprised someone uses it to justify murder." Katrina growled.

Aurora already had an idea of a suspect. Something didn't sit right about the idea, so she kept quiet for the moment.

After a few hours of cleaning and inspecting the carnage, they left the station to be met with hard rain. The blinding, rushing water and dark skies made it hard to see anything outside of the street lamps.

"Man, time flew," Browlen said. "No matter. We'll finish investigating until sunrise if we have to. We can't afford to let anyone else die if we can help it."

"By we, you mean you." Aurora yawned and stretched. "I'm tired and could use a meal. If this 'person' is too chicken to fight during the day, then I'll pass for now. Try this again tomorrow."

"Excuse you? You think you can sleep comfortably knowing that monster is out there wreaking havoc?"

"Yup. Besides, we've learned a lot this evening already."

Katrina interjected. "How could you say that? These people are in danger, even now! You can't just leave the investigation. You're going to keep investigating with us chicka."

Aurora laughed. "So now you want my help, blacksmith? Listen, it's not my job to deal with this, it's yours. My work is voluntary."

Suddenly, a loud shrieking rang in the air of the city. The three of them looked at each other. Aurora summoned her broom. "Looks like you guys lucked out. No way I'm passing on that."

"Your priorities make me sick!" Browlen growled.

"C'mon, it was coming from that way," Katrina said as she pointed south.

**_*****_ **

Just a bit earlier, Jason was still stuck at the house with Mary. They talked a bit about Jason's past, just to pass some time.

"I've heard stories about that but didn't know they were true. I'm deeply sorry for your loss." she said.

Jason smiled. He was glad that someone other than Aurora was treating him like a person. He gripped on to his dagger in its sheath. "In a way, it gives me strength as much as it gives me sorrow. Which is why I'm looking for the Divine Stones. I just know one of them can bring them back. Do you know anything about them?"

"I'm afraid I don't. I've heard stories but assumed they didn't actually exist."

Jason sighed and bowed its head. "Just like everyone else I've talked to in Gennomy."

"I know the loss of family is hard. The day I lost my husband I didn't know what to do. Despite his, well, questionable world view. He honestly wasn't the best man. Drunkard, abusive, controlling."

Jason tilted his head. "You don't speak too fondly of him to have loved him."

"But I did. Enough to want to kill the person who took him away from me. But alas, that may not be in Fraizen's plan." she sighed.

"Fraizen?"

"Why yes, Fraizen." She mustered up enough strength to walk over to her shrine. "Fraizen is the God of Fate. Everything that happens in our lives is predestined by Fraizen. If you go against his will, you'll be punished." Mary bit on her nail nervously. Her eyes wandered around the room. "I strayed from my path once, and now the lord has now taken my husband." she shivered and ran her hand through her hair.

Jason arose an eyebrow. He heard of Omni, God of creation, as well as other celestials before in other religions. Never has he heard of this Fraizen though. Jason found Mary very strange and off-putting. As he thought that, he heard tapping outside the window. He looked outside to see it was pouring. A thought struck Jason. Aurora had been gone for a while, and never once returned, not even for a meal. He knew Aurora got distracted a lot but felt even this time frame for her was odd. Jason's anxiety crept up his spine like a spider. Last time he felt like this was the last day he saw Fasha.

"Ma'am, I'll be right back, I promise. I have to go find my friend."

"You're leaving?"

"Stay here! Please!" Jason yelled as he dashed out the door.

Mary turned back to her shrine and put her hands together in prayer. "O' Lord Fraizen. Please, look after the boy. He may be a demon, but his intent is pure. I pray thee's fate is one of prosperity."

The cold rain ran down Jason's hair and body, soaking him. He didn't mind it, neither was he in any hurry, believing he'd find Aurora no problem. "Aurora's clueless, but can protect herself. She's strong. Stronger than me, stronger than anyone. Just glad to finally be out of that house and away from that creep." he told himself. "Fasha was strong too. Stronger than anyone. And yet." Jason shook his head, trying to get the thought out of his system. He didn't even realize he was picking up the pace to a jog.

Out of nowhere, he heard screams echo through the rain. He'd never heard a peep in his entire time there up to that point. Without hesitation, he sped toward the direction of the scream. He dashed through the wet streets, turning corner to corner. _It couldn't be her, could it? She's not one to cry out, yet....._ "I can't make that mistake again! I can't be too late again! No way!" His aura grew around him, and he sprinted as fast as he could.

When he turned the last corner, he saw someone at the end. He put on the breaks, sliding across the wet pavement. The figure was dark and he could hardly make it out. The figure was barely covered by a nearby dumpster in the corner.

"Aurora, is that you?"

Jason walked closer. He saw someone dressed in a trench coat, with long black hair. More bizarre was the long sheath on the hip of the person.

"You're not-"

Jason looked right beneath the girl and saw a pool of blood, along with the fresh corpse of a woman. His eyes widened when he met them with the striking, pink eyes of the person before them. He swiftly yanked out his dagger, but as soon as he looked up, the person was gone.


	12. Jason's Dagger

Jason looked around frantically, staying on his guard. A powerful breeze of wind and water brushed past him, nearly knocking him over. Suddenly, a blade pierced his torso from behind. His body froze, and blood slowly seeped out the wound and dripped down the long, black blade. _What is this!? I didn't even see her move. Was that displacement? No, it was even faster than that!_

He slowly looked back to meet eyes with the mysterious assassin once again. Jason saw her fangs extending past her lower lip along with her pale, snow-white skin.

"So, you are a demon? Then you'll have a lot to supply me," she whispered in his ear.

Jason's body grew numb and weak as if his energy was being zapped from him. He looked down at the blade and noticed his aura surrounding it. He swiftly swung his own blade back. The woman pulled out her sword and dodged. Jason stumbled to his knees, feeling the flaming pain of the wound. As expected, it healed almost instantly. However, Jason panted and sweated, feeling exhausted.

"What...was that?" Jason asked, running out of breath.

Jason finally got a good long look at what he was dealing with. The girl was about his height and seemed near his age too. She wore a black trench coat and had long black hair. Her black leather gloves gripped the handle of her katana tightly. The thing that stood out the most was her necklace, which had a pentagram charm on it. The same pentagram he saw at Mary's home.

"Lord Fraizen smiles on me once again. Bringing such a wealth of aura to me. You'll suffice nicely." she said.

 _That speed, those fangs, those eyes, and that pale skin. There's no mistaking it!_ Jason got on his guard once again. He readied his dagger, and his muscles tensed as his aura grew. "Vampire! You're the one who's been murdering people in this town, aren't you?"

The vampire took notice of Jason's dagger, seeing some familiarity in it. She refused to let him use it. "A powerful weapon like that in your hands?"

 _Wait, she knows about it??_ Jason saw her change towards him, but it was all a blur. Soon as he swung his dagger to guard, his forearm was severed by the vampire's sword. The blood from his arm splashed in his eyes. He fell to the ground and screamed in agony as his arm bled out. Jason saw his cleaved hand holding his dagger lying just before him, covered in blood. Tears filled his eyes, and the overwhelming pain overtook him. The vampire stood directly over him and placed her steel boot on his head.

Jason's arm began to heal, slowly reforming a new hand. As it did, the pain intensified and each breath he took drained more out of him.

"Even as a demon, healing severed limbs is no small feat. There will be no need though."

The vampire stabbed Jason again through his shoulder, driving her blade deep like a knife through cake. His aura seeped out and surrounded the black blade. His arm healed slower, almost to the point of stopping. At that point, Jason figured out what its effect was. The sword was draining his aura. He panicked. Worst case scenario, he ran out of aura and died. It would be the end of his clan. He would've failed his mission in bringing back his family, and avenging them. On top of which, Aurora would be alone.

"This is fate. It will be over soon, so try not to resist. It'll be less painful that way." she said.

Jason's aura spiked again, lighting up the entire alleyway. The vampire was surprised he had that much aura, even as a demon. Then, spikes emerged from his body. The vampire, again, pulled out her sword and leaped out of its range. The skewers nearly took out her head.

"Skewers like that? Furasaku clan? Interesting." she said to herself.

Jason was spent. Creating those skewers took almost everything out of him. The rest of his hand fully healed, and the hand that was severed faded into dust. Jason crawled to grab his blade and went on the offensive. He ferociously swung his dagger, looking to exploit an opening. The vampire easily dodged and parried each attack. Each time Jason charged with an attack he was cut by her blade. Each swing was slower than the last, and he didn't get a single strike. He tried to jump back and fire a thorn at her, but when he landed, he lost his balance and fell on his back. His vision blurred, and his muscles felt like gelatin as he sat upright. He couldn't even stand. He was so exhausted; he didn't even realize her sword pierced his chest.

The vampire lifted his weak body off the ground with her sword, siphoning more aura from him. "Pitiful creature. It's no wonder your species faces extinction. How you were once a world threat is beyond me."

Jason's hands shivered as he grabbed the blade impaling him. As if he lost sleep, he fought to keep his eyes open. However, the vampire noticed his eyes glowing brighter. "I will...make you...suffer," he uttered.

"Rest in peace, Furasaku demon. May Lord Fraizen have mercy on your tainted soul. Amen."

Out of seemingly nowhere, a fist rammed into the vampire's face. She tumbled backward through the hard, wet gravel. Something fell from her person upon impact with the ground. She quickly jumped to her feet to see Aurora, with rage-filled eyes fixated on her. Katrina caught Jason, with the sword still in him. Browlen stood behind her, focused on the vampire.

"So, you're the one? Interesting. This could be fun." Aurora smiled as her hair slowly stood up. "Can't say I'm happy to see your sword inside my friend."

The vampire saw the scorpion logos on the militia's uniform, as well as the brand on Aurora's neck. "Magic Militia, and the princess of the Pearl Kingdom." _Their aura would suffice nicely, but fighting them all together in these conditions isn't ideal._

"I hope you enjoyed your killing spree. The only blood spilled from here on out is your-"

Aurora stumbled back, nearly being knocked over by a gust of wind and water. The vampire stood right between the militia and over Jason. She pulled her sword out of his chest and stormed off, all in the blink of an eye. Aurora stood frozen, barely processing what happened. Browlen and Katrina were equally stunned.

"A kid? That fast?" Browlen uttered.

"Only one species can move that quickly. She was definitely a vampire." Katrina uttered, shivering.

Jason groaned, unable to keep his eyes open anymore. Blood readily spewed from his chest and back. Katrina lied Jason on the ground. Aurora ran back over to her friend. She placed her hand on him. His body grew cold, and not just from the rain.

"His wound isn't healing! He doesn't have enough aura!" she panicked.

"Don't worry! We won't let him die." Katrina pulled out a healing crystal from her pocket.

Browlen's vein nearly bursted out of his head from seeing that. "Private, what's the meaning of this? Using our last healing crystal on a terrorist?"

"What did you say? He's not a terrorist, blockhead!" Aurora barked.

"He'll die if we don't! You said it yourself. We can't let anyone else die. Besides, he may have information, which is vital to complete our mission."

Words jammed in Browlen's mouth.

Without wasting time waiting for her superior's approval, Katrina crushed the crystal directly over Jason's wound. A purple gas engulfed Jason's body, and all of his wounds closed up and heat returned to his body. In a matter of seconds, he regained consciousness and sprung back up to his feet.

Aurora sighed of relief. She stood up and slapped Jason on the back. "Look at you trooper! Thought we lost ya there. Don't scare me like that."

Jason's jaw tightened and he stared at the ground.

"What's wrong?"

Jason pointed off in the corner. "I couldn't save her... she was dead before I saw the vampire even move."

Aurora and the two soldiers noticed the dead girl in the corner for the first time. A pool of blood surrounded her. Katrina looked away. Browlen however stared at the girl with a solemn expression. He marched right over to the girl and picked up her lifeless body.

"Poor girl didn't deserve such a fate at such a young age." His eyes darted back to Jason. "Tell me, Furasaku demon. Were you in league with that assassin we just saw?"

"What? I was stabbed! Why would you ask something so stupid?" Jason asked.

"Browlen, please stop," Katrina begged.

"I know how you demons work. You can heal from any wound that isn't directed at the heart or decapitation. It could all be a ruse to gain our trust and use it against us. Not like demons aren't infamous for backstabbing."

Aurora nearly jumped hearing those words.

"Enough! You don't know anything about demons, my clan, or me! So cut the shit! That vampire is as much of an enemy to me as she is to you!" Jason shouted.

"I know plenty; I've been a soldier for six years! I've fought your kind before I know how you operate! Your kind is pure evil and only capable of pain and destruction. There's no getting around that!"

"The only 'evil' is in your corrupt military! You say you care for the people, but you all couldn't give a damn! You all only care about status, money, and power! You all just push around those beneath you!"

"Will you two STOP!" Katrina yelled. "We shouldn't be fighting each other! There is a homicidal vampire on the loose! That's where our attention should be. Whatever ill will you have towards each other, please save it for after we've detained this vampire girl and brought her into custody."

Jason and Browlen's eyes never left each other's. Their glares of hate only intensified, along with their auras. They hardly even noticed it was flowing around them.

Browlen scoffed. "Fine, fine. I'm going to find a proper burial for this girl. Private, you and these...volunteers search for the vampire. If you come across her, send a flare and I'll head towards your location."

Katrina nodded.

"I'll be damned to take orders from you!" Jason growled as he took off into the streets.

"Jason!" Aurora called out.

"There goes our intel." Katrina sighed.

"I'll talk to him, blacksmith. It won't be long." Aurora summoned her broom and took off after him.

Katrina watched as she took off when something shiny took her eye. She approached a spot on the ground and found a small pouch containing shards of glowing blue crystal.

**_***_ **

Even with the pouring rain, Aurora never expected to lose sight of him so quickly. He was a quick one, that was certain. After flying around for a while, she found him at the edge of a tall building, looking down at the rest of the wet city. Aurora approached him and put her hand on his shoulder. His body felt like a hot stove.

"Think this is the first time I've seen ya storm off. You look like me after arguing with Euryale." Aurora laughed nervously.

Jason didn't turn back to face her. "Was that supposed to make me less pissed off?"

"Don't get me wrong, that Browlen guy is a total douche. But it isn't like you to blow up like that."

"How would you know? You hadn't known me that long Aurora. You don't know anything about me!"

Aurora retreated her hand. When Jason faced her, she saw a familiar flare in his eyes. It was the same eyes she saw a year and a half ago. "Yeah, I suppose your right. Sorry."

Jason's face loosened up. He sighed and tried to calm his temper. "No, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bark at you. It's just really frustrating to hear him talk about my people. He didn't know them! I will admit, demons are called what they are for a reason. We originate from the Gaea dimension, from Hell. But not all are evil. We definitely weren't, and were judged anyway."

Aurora knew well what Jason meant.

Jason pulled out his dagger. "This weapon here, it was meant to protect them, protect my people. Had I been capable, they'd be here to defend themselves against people like Browlen and Euryale. It was always people like them we had to worry about, not because they were strong, but because they had power."

**_August 24th , 2012_ **

At the young age of 12, Jason found himself in a scuffle right outside of his village borders. Battered and bruised, he shook as he stood to his feet and shielded his young cousin, Milly. Two men in Magic Militia uniforms towered over him confidently. Both were tall and merely just sorcerers with proficiency in earth and wind magic respectively. They both didn't have patches on their shoulders, indicating they were just privates. Milly cried out, wanting Jason to stand down and run away with her. The young child was terrified to see the one protecting her get knocked around. However, he refused, standing his ground.

"Cowards. Hurting an innocent child?" Jason asked, filled with rage and his aura flowing.

The two laughed it off. "Come on little man. If you ran you could've been spared. We're just getting a little cash for those red eyes and fangs you demons have. Make a killing down in Ferrow's black market."

"You're supposed to be soldiers! Soldiers don't attack their people!"

"You're not our people, kid. You're a demon. The Queen doesn't care if you all live or die. In fact, most people are scared shitless of you monsters!" The taller one aimed his palm at Jason. "Come to think of it. You may be worth more than the other runt."

Jason looked back at Milly, telling her to run off and get help. She was far too terrified to move. Right then, a blast of wind struck him, piercing particles off his clothes and skin. The two soldiers laughed at his expense. Jason leaped back on his feet and charged towards them. Even with all of his aura, pride, and training up to that point, he was demoralized right in front of Milly. Jason's blood painted the grass and dirt beneath him. He fell like a domino, with his face numb and lumped. His eyes teared up and he began to lose consciousness, but as he did, he saw one of them go after Milly. Not even realizing, he sprung to his feet to shield her again.

Right before his vision turned to black, he saw a girl wearing all black and a mask coming in and fighting the militia before him.

Jason's entire body was pulsating when he came to. He groggily pushed himself off the ground and looked around. Initially, his vision was extremely blurry. Once it cleared, he saw the masked girl standing with her back turned, carrying twin blades on her back. Jason knew right away who it was. She carried Milly in her arms, who was fast asleep and was spacing out in the distance. Jason sighed out of relief, but all the same, was frustrated.

"I see you're finally awake, JayJay." she said softly.

"Thanks...Fasha." he said painfully as he punched the ground.

She slowly turned around and took off her mask. "Why do you sound so upset? Milly is safe, and so are you."

"You know why! I couldn't do anything against those guys. I couldn't protect Milly. If you didn't show, they would've ravaged our village." Jason complained. "I'm too weak!"

Jason noticed Fasha didn't have her normal happy-go-lucky demeanor. Her face was cold and frowned up. "JayJay. Look around you," she said.

He sprung to his feet and saw the Militia stacked on top of each other. Their uniforms were torn, they were covered in blood and claw marks. It looked like they were mauled by a wild animal. The surrounding area was in worse shape than the soldiers. The forest ground was decimated with craters and rubble, and several trees were knocked down. Jason scratched his head and looked back at Fasha.

"Seesh, you could've held back! Those two could be dead. Why'd you go that wild?"

Fasha bit down on her lip and looked away. "I didn't..."

Coming to the harsh realization, Jason's eyes widened. He couldn't believe he was capable of that. More so, he couldn't believe that he didn't remember a second of it. To clear up the situation. The two brought Milly home and the captive to their village chief, Alizon Furasaku, in her village hut. She had the same red eyes like them, but her fangs and claws were dull, almost to a nub. The wrinkles on her face were akin to a pug, yet her smile was as lively as any young soul. The old woman congratulated Jason and Fasha for protecting Milly, and the village.

"Fasha, your growth and abilities have the Skewer Ops flourishing. Great work. And you, Jason. You're growing as well. I'm proud of you both." she said.

"Oh, it's uhm, no problem!" Jason blushed. He only felt bad he couldn't do anything when conscious. He didn't feel fit enough to join Fasha in the Skewer Ops, and he knew he wasn't nearly as talented.

"There aren't many warriors so pure and willing to protect. So, for that, I have something for you, young Jason." She reached into her thick robe and pulled out a large, wooden box that appeared like a small coffin. She opened the top to reveal a bronze dagger that shined in the light.

Both Fasha's and Jason's eyes sparkled at the sight of that weapon. "What is this?" Jason asked.

"JayJay! That's a Celestial weapon! One of the legendary weapons of war! The one that creates black flames that can't be extinguished! That one is... allergy. Wait, uhm.... allegory?" Fasha struggled.

Chief Alizon laughed. "This is Alighieri, child. This Celestial Weapon was once used by the founder of our village, Dante Furasaku, in the First Great War against the Gorgon Empire. There's always a single member of our village who could wield the weapon. The last to do so was your father, Saruli. I see it fitting to give to you, Jason."

Fasha felt her heart sink.

"Me? Why me? I can't...I don't deserve this."

"Your indomitable will to protect is what will keep our clan prospering. With this dagger, I entrust the future to you, Jason. Entrust it to you to further your inner strength, and protect your mother, family, and clan with all your might."

"I....I." Jason felt a heavy burden thrown onto his shoulders, but nonetheless, he accepted. He bowed and received the dagger. "I won't let you down, Chief Alizon."

**_Current Day_ **

"The chief trusted me with Dante's freakin' weapon Aurora. A Celestial Weapon! And I've never once been able to use its power. And because of that, I was not only left out of missions from the Skewer Ops, but I wasn't able to do the very thing I was entrusted to. They're all gone, and I have no right to bear this weapon." Jason said. "No matter how much I want to, even when I bring them back, we will still be powerless to the Militia and the Council. We will always be at the bottom. I'm in no position to change that."

Aurora bit back on her lip, thinking of a million things she could tell him. She did what she does best, try to make light of dark.

"Liar."

Jason was taken aback. "What?"

"Liar! The chief was right to choose you to carry that."

"What makes you-"

"It's obvious! It was obvious in the kingdom and obvious today. You are willing to defend your family name whether they are alive or not. Hell, you're looking for stones of legend to bring them all back! Only one willing to go at such lengths for there people should be worthy of carrying such a weapon. On top of which, you don't even just protect your kind, but others. Those people fleeing the giants and me from my mom, a literal demi-god. I can go on." Aurora got close and flicked Jason on the nose. "I may not have known you my whole life, but I know you better than you think." she smiled.

The pouring rain settled down to a drizzle. Jason saw the sincerity on Aurora's face. She was like a ball of light shining on him.

"As for the Queen and the militia, it's a tall order. But I'm sure having me around will help in that department, trust. We'll figure it out. Just like we'll figure how to find the Divine Stones and how to put a fork in that pesky vampire chick." she smiled.

Jason chuckled. "Of course, after all that, a fight is on your mind."

"Well, you know me. And we also gotta figure out how to get that weapon of yours working. Euryale told me how destructive Aligooey was! I always thought it was a white blade though. Anyway, I wish you knew how to do it back in our first fight. You may have actually beaten me."

"What? First off, it's Alighieri! Secondly, asshole, we never finished our fight! Therefore, I never lost!"

"Yeah, but you didn't win either. Not like you would have."

"I don't care for your implication that you're stronger than me! You may be special but you're lacking in a brain."

"Why don't you put your money where your mouth is. You know I'm down to kick your ass any day. And not just in a sparring match."

"Fine! After we find the stones, bring my family back, and get rid of your curse, we'll settle this."

The two of them jumped up and shook hands on it, laughing and giggling. Aurora was happy to see that she lifted his spirits. Just as she had that thought, Katrina had found them. After leaping to the top of the building where they were, she took a second to catch her breath.

"You two done making out up here? I could use your help searching for that vampire you know." Katrina said.

The two of them blushed. "We were not making out!" they said in unison.

"Besides blacksmith, we aren't soldiers. We can deal with the vampire girl at our leisure. You're the one with priority deadlines." Aurora said.

Jason punched her in the arm. "Don't listen to her. If that vampire is truly out there mercilessly killing, we'll help you guys detain her. Call it a thank you for healing me. I do appreciate it, really."

"It's no problem, just doing my job. And I'm sorry about my superior. He has a bit of a...different world view. I apologize if he offended you." Katrina bowed.

Jason sighed. "I suppose I can put up with it to protect innocent people."

The three of them then spent the next several hours searching every inch of the city. They even went door to door to check people's homes (with only a handful of people actually home). They couldn't find a trace of the vampire. It was as if she was never in the city to begin with. They eventually met up with Browlen, who'd already buried the body and did a search of the city himself.

"If she's around, she's well out of the city limits. I'm afraid we can't leave the city until she returns." Browlen said.

"If she returns. Why would she come back anyway? Unless she murders for sport. We weren't exactly around her long enough to learn her endgame." Aurora chimed.

"Maybe not, but something tells me she'll be back soon." Katrina reached in her pocket and pulled out a pouch. She revealed the glowing crystal shards. "I found this in the same spot where Aurora punched her. They look like artificial sorcerer stones. Aura amplifiers."

They all marveled at the sight. Something struck Aurora. "Hold on a sec. These stones in the hands of non-military? That's just like..."

"That sorcerer you fought, right? Raiko!" Jason added.

"I've heard of him. He was arrested recently down in Orari. He was a specialist in...golems?" Katrina said.

"He was. He just had bad luck running into me." Aurora gloated.

"Even if the information is small, anything can help. We can assume that the vampire was responsible for the incident in the police station. We could use any and all information you guys have." Browlen said.

Browlen and Jason were back in a staring contest. "Fine. We'll cooperate," he said.

"We'll help you find her, but I'll be the one to fight her, got it?" Aurora barked.

Browlen squeezed the space between his eyes. "We can only hope it'll only take one of us to actually detain her. We at least know that, with it being daylight soon, finding her will be out of the question for another twelve hours. Vampires will shrivel and burn in the sun. We should all get some rest so we can game plan for a search in the evening. We have a base camp just outside of town."

Aurora remembered something once he mentioned a base camp. "Jason...where's Mary?"

"Who?" Katrina asked.

Jason staggered for a moment. "Oh shit. We have to go!"

Both Aurora and Jason took off.

"Wait! Hold on!" Katrina yelled as she took after them, with Browlen close behind.


	13. I won't let you down

Aurora and the others reached Mary's home. Aurora and Jason both were relieved to find out she was alright. Mary was introduced to the soldiers of the Militia and they were mostly caught up. Mary, seeing how the soldiers were to help in the effort to detain the vampire, offered her home for all of them to sleep. Initially, they were hesitant, but with burning eyes and a lack of energy, they complied. The group all slept soundly that morning, unaware of the whereabouts of the vampire they encountered.

**_***_ **

While the Aurora and the others were catching up on sleep, the vampire in question was in a cave just outside of the city. After a short prayer, she reached into her pocket and felt they were empty. Her breathing wavered and she punched the ground in frustration. "This can't be happening!"

Hissing echoed from the deeper, darker parts of the cave. She saw beady red eyes, looking almost like lasers, inching close to her. Emerging from the shadows was a small black viper, flickering its forked tongue. The vampire got on a knee and bowed.

"Lady Medusa."

The snake spoke as if it were a microphone. "Serena Alucard. You've been collecting aura in Itesteria for a week. Surely you've made enough artificial stones to return back to base?"

Serena avoided eye contact and stared at the ground worriedly.

The snake tilted its head. "What is it, child?"

"Nothing mi'lady. It's just I may be in the country for one more night. There are some.... interesting auras I'd like to collect for you. Two of which you may find great pleasure in."

"Oh? Do tell."

"One of which is a demon, with extensive aura. I've collected some but he still breathes. And the other is one of your own blood. Your niece."

"Niece? Ah yes, Euryale's child. I've heard she's quite the powerhouse, even at such a young age."

"She could be used as a bargaining tool against your sister. Should I capture her alive?"

"No, do what you will with her. But getting her aura would be nice. Other than that, she doesn't interest me much. Oh, but what I'd give to see Euryale's face if I dumped her dead child to her feet." Medusa laughed under her breath. "Nonetheless we don't have time for petty squabbles. Be back after tomorrow night with the new stones."

"Of course. Anything for you Lady Medusa."

"Oh, and one more thing. Our sources tell us there's a Divine Stone in Flareville. Once Hatake confirms this, I'll be sending you back out to retrieve it."

Serena arose an eyebrow. "The land of Dragons? They've discovered a stone? That sounds dangerous."

"My thoughts exactly. Those incompetent savages don't need to have one in their possession. But, that's all. Get some sleep, Serena."

"Thank you, Lady Medusa."

The snake slithered back off into the shadows. Serena sighed and sat on the ground, frustrated that she lied to her. She lost the stones, and couldn't think of where. She rustled her hair. "Lord Fraizen, how is this path one I need?" At that moment, she remembered when Aurora punched her. She figured she must've dropped it there. She knew she couldn't afford to just leave those and assumed their group picked it up when she stormed off. Right as she decided to go back out, she saw the sun rising on the horizon. _If this is the path I must take, then I follow it willingly. Tonight, all will be right. I cannot afford to fail her. To disappoint her._

**_****_ **

Much later, that afternoon, Aurora and the others had all waken up and were fed to a small breakfast of freshly cut fruit served with orange juice. All of them, including Mary, sat at the table. Initially, there was deafening silence and intense glaring between Jason and Browlen. Katrina felt the heavy air, making it hard for her to eat. Even Mary was put off by it. Aurora just ignored it and munched happily on apple slices.

"Ahem." Katrina said, breaking the silence. "So, Jason, right? When you fought the vampire, what stood out? Any Abilities we should worry about?"

Jason didn't respond right away, still fixated on Browlen until Aurora gave him a nudge on the arm. "Oh, uh. She's super-fast, being a vampire and all. Even her combat speed exceeds mine. And her sword can siphon aura through cutting or stabbing. Every time she did, I got significantly weaker."

Katrina's eyes lit up. "Siphon aura? Her sword was a black katana right?"

"I think so. It was dark, rainy, I was being stabbed, hard to say."

Katrina looked as if she was going to jump out of her chair in excitement. Everyone else gave her an awkward look.

"What are you all gawking at? Don't you know what this means? Jason fought against a Celestial Weapon!"

Jason was both shocked and disappointed. Celestial Weapons wasn't something he wanted to delve more into at that moment.

"Oh, here she goes. No stopping her now." Browlen sighed.

She pulled out a handbook from her jacket sleeve. The book was entitled 'Celestial Weapons'. She flipped the pages until she found a black katana. "See here, the blade Jason likely encountered was Masamune. It can steal aura as well as give it back out. It's like if a syringe was a sword. It's of course incredibly sharp, can cut through almost anything, and can act without a wielder. Not as destructive in power as King Arthur's Excalibur, but still famous."

Aurora was surprised she was so ecstatic about it.

Katrina redirected her attention to Jason. "You should feel lucky! Not everyone gets cut with a Celestial Blade."

"I almost died."

"But you lived to tell about it!"

"Wait, I have a question. These Celestial Weapons, how do they work? Can anyone use their power?"

"Of course not! There would be calamity if that were the case. It's a bit vague, and scientists haven't fully figured it out. But the weapon has to choose its wielder. It's possible for more than one person to wield a Celestial Weapon, but it's up to the weapon to allow its power to be used. Sometimes it could even come at a price."

"I...see. She can wield a weapon like that." Jason looked down at his weapon. He sighed, growing more internally upset at what he just learned.

"Who cares if she wields one? It won't save her from this _smoke_ coming her way." Aurora smiled.

"Hold your horses, princess. You shouldn't consider fighting her on your own. We need to find out her motive first. Speaking of, private, the crystals?" Browlen said

Katrina pulled out the pouch and opened it, revealing the glowing blue shards. "Shards signifying blue are pockets of aura. Artificial sorcerer's stones, specifically used by and for the Magic Militia to amplify one's own aura use by adding on to it."

"You said Raiko had some too? How long ago was this, princess?" Browlen asked.

"Stop calling me princess! And that was about a week and a half ago. Even with the amplification, he was still sorta weak compared to me. But the damage he did to Orari was no small feat."

"It's impossible that either he or this vampire could've gotten some. They are produced at one factory and we at the militia are notified about potential break-ins. We've had no security issues in years!"

Aurora stopped munching her apples for a moment. "Wait, you guys said that sword can steal aura and give it off? The one Dracula Jr. Uses?"

"Yeah chicka, congrats on being able to pay attention," Katrina said.

"And these artificial stones are made of aura? Guys, that vampire is targeting civilians probably to make these stones if they weren't stolen."

They all had a collective gasp. "This just got worse then! She's killing and distributing to people capable of wiping out entire cities. All of Gennomy will be buried if we let her slip away!" Browlen panicked.

"Don't lose your lunch primate. She won't because I'll smear her on the pavement. And even if I don't, you guys are strong too. Blacksmith is good with swords, your aura manipulation is super impressive. And....", Aurora rustled Jason's spiky hair as if she were a proud mother, "My boy here's a pure genius who's almost as strong as I am! Not to mention he wields a Celestial Weapon of his own." she snickered.

Jason nearly choked on the strawberries he was eating. "Aurora! That was supposed to be a secret!" he barked.

"Really? You never said so."

"I-you. Ugh!"

"What do you mean chicka?" Katrina asked.

Aurora pulled Jason's dagger and sheath and revealed the bronze blade. "I present to you all, Alleygare!"

Katrina, Browlen, and Mary stared at her blankly. Jason buried his burning face. "She means Alighieri."

Katrina leaned over to get a closer look at it. She grew even more ecstatic. "No way! This is such a big part of history! Though..." Katrina flipped through her textbook to find the page covering the weapon. "It's showed to be a white blade, not a bronze one. Not to mention I don't remember you using black flames on us."

"I didn't use black flames because I can't. I don't know how to utilize its celestial power." Jason mumbled, hanging his head.

The room went quiet once again. Browlen turned to Mary and bowed. "Ma'am, thank you for allowing us to stay the night. Me and my partner will get ready to be rid of this fiend now that we have the necessary information."

"Oh, it's no problem. Thank you very much sir." she replied.

He redirected to Aurora and Jason. Jason got on guard for another offhanded comment. "As for you two, your assistance is no longer required. As per the Queen's orders, we are to leave you be. You can do whatever you wish, but stay out of our way on this mission."

"What?" Jason asked. "First you wanted our help and now you don't? The hell?"

"You both were useful for recon and information. We know as much as we need to in order to deal with the threat. Besides, if something were to happen to the princess, our time in the service could be up."

"He kind of has a point...sorry guys. It's just too risky." Katrina said, putting away her book.

"Fine. We won't need your help taking out the vampire anyway." Aurora said, picking her teeth. "I can deal with the bitch myself."

"You won't _deal_ with anything princess. Just stay indoors until this ordeal is settled."

Jason noticed how Browlen kept glancing over at him, particularly his blade on the table. To test something, he swiftly reached for it. Browlen aimed his finger at Jason and a yellow bubble appeared at the end of it.

"Don't fucking move!" Browlen yelled, frazzled.

"I knew it! Aurora, this asshole isn't worried about us. He's just worried about me. Ain't that right, Knight Browlen?"

Browlen felt the pressure of having all eyes on him. He slowly lowered his arm and sighed. "That weapon was a dangerous tool of war. Whether you were able to use it or not is irrelevant, since anything can be activated in the heat of battle. The black flames were set to incinerate anything it touches. An inextinguishable flame. If you were to use it in a collaboration with us against the threat, you could not only threaten me and my subordinate but the princess as well. I can't risk that under my jurisdiction."

Jason's eyebrows lowered. He was unsatisfied with that answer. "Even if I could use the flames, I'd never point them on allies or friends. If anything, I'd use them to protect! That was the whole reason my village chief gave me this."

"Protect huh? Please. Point is, I can't have a demon on a mission like this one. It's too risky."

"I knew that was your reason! That's such bull! I just want to protect the remaining people of this town. Keep them from being hunted by the vampire, who I've fought already. She's already faster than all of us combined, so it will take all of us to take her down!"

"Me and private Katrina will be fine on our own! We don't need you jeopardizing more lives!"

"I don't jeopardize lives! What's with all you militia always judging demons before even knowing them? You don't know anything about me!"

"I know you stole magic items in Moro Town. I know you put a hole in my shoulder, which if healing crystals didn't exist, I'd be out of a career! I know your kind ran one of the most active syndicate of thugs in recent history. I know enough. As a member of the Magic Militia, it is my duty to prioritize missions as well as lives of the populace. We serve both the Magic Council, and the people."

Jason's aura flared and his hair stood up. "You serve the people? Then tell me, protector, why the hell is my entire family gone?"

The entire room went silent. Aurora stopped eating, not even able to stomach up an appetite. Katrina and Mary both covered their wide open mouths in shock.

"Guys, please. We can resolve this matter in something other than a shouting match, especially when we're all guest." Katrina said, covering her face of embarrassment.

"Katrina, you make a fantastic point." Jason took his sheath and attached it back to his waist. "One thing about my people, sir knight, is that whenever we had issues, we settled it in a duel. And the winner wins the argument. Simple yes, but kept our clan out of civil wars for generations on end."

"I like where this is going!" Aurora squealed.

"We can just settle this like men. Let's fight, one on one. No magic items, no assists from our partners. If I win, we help in the mission effort and fight Katrina as a team. Also, you'll stop ridiculing my family!"

Browlen sighed. "This is purely a childish gambit. But I'm assuming if I win, you'll stay out of our way?"

"I'll do you one better. Me and Aurora will leave Vanland entirely, and, I'll hand Alighieri over to you."

Aurora nearly jumped out of her seat. "What the fuck? No dude! That was given to you by your family! You were willing to die just to hold on to that back in the kingdom. Don't do something that stupid! That's my job!"

"Stay out of this Aurora!"

Aurora's mouth tightened.

"If I can't beat this douchebag, who's been just mocking my clan the whole time, I'm not worthy of wielding Alighieri. I couldn't protect them back then, and can't even protect their namesake. Besides, Katrina is just salivating to get this thing off me."

"He's not wrong chicka! That's a historical artifact I'd love! I promise to take care of it." Katrina said.

Jason stood up and pointed his blade at Browlen. "So, do we have a deal, sir knight?"

Browlen stood up, towering over him and everyone else. He just nodded.

With that heated exchange, they all went outside to an expansive rooftop of an old abandoned flat-top building. Mary stood behind Aurora and Katrina, while Browlen and Jason stood across from each other on opposite ends of the platform.

"Chika, you sure you don't wanna say anything to him? maybe a pre-game boost or something? He's going against a seasoned veteran in his prime. His chances are...well, zero." Katrina said.

Aurora smirked. "He doesn't need a cheerleader, blacksmith. He isn't losing. Just watch. He's not as strong as me, but he did do something even I couldn't do. He beat Euryale."

"I see. Wait, excuse me!? He did wha-"

"Shh. Fireworks about to start!"

Jason took off his hoodie and cracked his neck. He watched as Browlen took off his militia jacket, revealing his skin-tight burgundy shirt and his budging pecks and abs. He stretched his ripped arms with his fur-like golden hair all over them. His golden tail twirled around behind him. Even though Jason came to blows with Browlen already, he was just taking in the height difference between them. His stomach turned and he felt like looking away until Browlen addressed him.

"You sure you want to do this? This is your last chance to back out. I'd feel bad for beating down a child."

Jason's eye twitched and any semblance of fear he had vanished, displaced with the seething rage he'd felt since they met. "Save your crocodile tears, 'cuz I'm not losing. I already had you on the ground once before." Jason whipped out his dagger and pointed it at the giant beastman.

Browlen's eyebrows furrowed. Just seeing those red eyes reminded him of his first encounter with a demon. When he was just seventeen, he caught a glimpse demon covered in the white of their clothing and the red stains of blood. Even if he only saw it for a split second, the image of it's eyes and the many bodies surrounding it burned in his memory. As a soldier, he now had the power to keep something like that from repeating. He refused to take a chance with Jason. "Spoken like a true demon. Way to show your colors. Rules will be simple: first to admit defeat or lose consciousness for more than a minute loses. We can start when you're ready."

"Fine by me!" Jason dashed in without warning and aimed his dagger at Browlen's chest. His blade clashed with a yellow, translucent wall of aura, and his fury peaked to see him motionless. Jason backed away and darted around him. Browlen frantically looked around, seeing Jason as nothing but a blur.

"Is this all you're good for? Running? Pathetic!" Browlen said.

Jason reappeared behind Browlen, raising his leg up for an ax-kick. When he swung down, he was met with another barrier, this time a translucent orange. Jason's body flicked off of it on impact and into the air, sending all the force of his kick back at him. His knee inverted to the point where his leg formed a 90-degree angle. Jason fell and tumbled in the opposite direction, with his leg snapped. He howled in agony, gripping it and shivering.

"So lucky to be a demon. Even so, that will take a ton of aura to heal. Wanna give up and accept your place? Or do you want this lesson to get more...intimate?" Browlen taunted.

Jason's leg healed and snapped back in place almost instantly. He slowly got back up. His read aura twirled around him. _You've got to calm down Jason. You've got to chill, think, and find out what the HELL that magic was!_

 _"_ You seem to love your clan a lot. It's actually admirable. Have you considered joining them?" Browlen asked.

Jason's eyes widened and he shook even harder. Just seeing the smug on his ape-like face as he said that sent Jason's mind into complete disarray. He'd had enough of the taunting, and only wanted blood. The building beneath them quaked and Jason's aura exploded and he let out a powerful roar.

 _That disgusting red aura. It's feel...it's bloodlust. It's just like the damn red assassin._ Browlen stood still, watching the fireworks. Katrina and Mary covered their eyes, starstruck from the red spectacle as well as Browlen's words. Aurora said nothing, watching closely and frowning.

Jason, again, rushed Browlen. He swiftly and ferociously swung his blade and tried to cut through Browlen's barrier. He stopped and put his dagger back in its sheath. He opted to ram his fist through it, shattering it like class. Browlen was caught off guard, stumbling back. Jason broke through Browlen's defenses and launched his fist into his stomach. The behemoth bent over and gasped for air. Jason then hit Browlen with an uppercut before following with a barrage of punches to his body. Using his giant mitts, Browlen grabbed Jason's last punch and threw him away. Jason panted but felt elated from blowing off that steam. But he was surprised to see Browlen laughing, as well as noticing him holding his right shoulder.

"Now that's what I expect. That tenacity, that rage, that bloodlust! Bare those fangs and claws proudly like the monster you are."

Jason growled of frustration again. "I've had enough of that damn mouth!" He aimed his right arm and his aura gathered around it. Jason held his arm steady with his left hand. Seeing Browlen spreading his feet apart in a sturdy stance pissed him off further. In a bang, a thorn flew out of his hand like a missile. The force nearly took Jason off his feet and blew a gust of wind around the battlefield.

An orange, translucent barrier once again formed around him. Jason staggered, and in the blink of an eye, his thorn flew right back at him and through his shoulder. It left a large, gaping hole and splattered blood and chunks of bone ligaments to the ground behind him. Jason fell back first, in too much pain to even scream. All he could hear was white noise, and faint screaming from Mary and Katrina.

Jason lied in a growing pool of blood, his head beating like a drum. He thought it was over. He did the very thing he swore he wouldn't let his clan down a second time. His eyes slowly revolved to the back of his head, until he remembered something. He remembered the wise, yet somewhat childish words his old friend Fasha told him years ago.

" _Your problem is that you're too antsy, silly. You always get mad and begin flailing like a dummy, dummy. Your temper tantrums are kinda hilarious. Sticks and stones break bones but words always hurt you! Sooner you keep that from happening, the sooner you get closer to being a Skewer Op. After all, you're too smart not to be!"_

With all the training he'd done since the incident, and all he'd been through, he let the most important lesson slip. With all his might, he kept his eyes wide open. His shoulder began to reform. The white noise faded and he was able to hear the chatter in the form of arguing.

"Browlen, that was so stupid! Using your counter shield on an attack like that? If he wasn't a demon, he'd be dead!" Katrina yelled ferociously.

"It's because he's a demon that there's no issue! He'll be fine. It'll teach the bastard some respect."

"How could you say that? You're a soldier." Mary complained.

"Respect? You're the one disrespecting him! For what, because he's a demon? Who cares? He can be an asset to a mission that we should be preparing for!" Katrina griped.

"You shut that damn mouth of yours private!" Browlen screamed. "Demons have proven themselves to be monsters, and based on this fight it's clear he's no different! It was only a matter of time before he loses it and goes on a killing spree. They always do! He will only be a liability to our mission. The fact he still has you and the princess fooled is beyond me!"

Jason couldn't hear Aurora say a thing amongst Browlen, Mary, and Katrina arguing, but he heard all he needed to. He jumped to his feet again, nearly slipping in his own blood. He still felt very lightheaded and a bit weak.

Everyone stopped to look at him. Browlen clapped his hands. "Got up just before the minute mark. You're as tenacious as a cockroach. At least now you know what a thorn through the shoulder feels like. Hurts, doesn't it?"

 _Even with the aura I have left, I can muster a few attacks, but is it enough against him? He's barely even damaged, and I'm sure he has a lot of aura. Not to mention that counter-shield sends everything back at double the strength._ Jason glanced over at Aurora. She was still frowning and her arms were folded. He gave her a nervous smile and a nod. Her face loosened and she grinned back, returning his nod.

"You seriously want to continue this fight? You're in no condition." Browlen said.

 _I've got to admit, he's sharp. Way sharper than Aurora. He made me make the very mistake Euryale made against me. It doesn't matter, now that I've had time to think, this fight is mine._ Jason saw Browlen once again covering his right shoulder with his left hand and rotating his arm. He smiled, ready to go. "I lay down for no one!"

Jason bolted and came in hot towards Browlen's right side. The soldier frantically countered and parried Jason's close assault. Every punch and kicked was blocked and knocked away, but slower and sloppier. Jason kept focusing on the right, putting pressure before Browlen knocked him away with a left hook.

He swiftly jumped back up and aimed his hand at Browlen again. Browlen stood firm in his stance, however, immediately darted his eyes to Jason's right foot, which looked as if it were digging into the ground. The soldier felt the vibrations beneath him. With all his strength, he leaped high into the air just as four, long black skewers spiked from the ground. Jason jumped after him and drew his blade. As Browlen descended, he balled his giant fists together and raised them up. Jason took his dagger and stabbed his own left hand, splattering blood all over it and grunting. It took Browlen by surprise, but he still slapped his balled-up fists into Jason's head, sending him into the ground.

Browlen landed on his feet and, again, grabbed his right shoulder. _Why would the boy stab his own hand? Even without an opening, why would he attack himself?_ Browlen marched over towards where Jason crashed. He saw him motionless in a fetal position. "Told you this would end the same way. This was meaningless."

Once he saw Browlen was close enough. Jason turned and whipped his dagger out of the palm of his hand. Blood spewed out and splattered into Browlen's eye, prompting him to shriek in pain. As he tried to rub his eyes, Jason put away his dagger and struck him straight in the shoulder. The soldier yelled and stumbled backward. With him stunned, Jason hit him with body blows before decking him in the jaw with all his strength. Browlen fell like a domino, completely disoriented and slightly blind. Jason jumped on top of him and aimed his dagger at him by the time he opened his blood-stained eyes.

"Surrender. This fight is over." Jason said as the hole in his hand closed.

The spectators were all shocked and silent, even Aurora. She'd known the strategist he always has been but never would've thought he'd go as far as to hurt himself just to win a fight. She couldn't help but give a dorky smile. All the same, she was just reminded of what his family meant to him. Telling him the truth at this point would crush him, body and soul. But, he deserved to know. The question was: when?

Browlen opened his bloodstained eyes. All though they burned and his vision was bloody, he could make out Jason's intense stare. He'd seen it before. "You fight dirty. Most demons flaunt their aura, but you're a crafty bastard."

"Of course. I carry the Furasaku name, and I will defend it by any means."

Browlen looked at Jason's eyes again. What he saw wasn't the same bloodlust as the Red-Assassin. Instead, he saw the very eyes he had on his face. They looked confident, but also desperate. He sighed. "Fine. I give. You win, demon."


End file.
